Building Mental Fitness for Sustainable Productivity

Turns out, I was wrong. There is one habit that that guarantees enhanced performance: a robust and consistent mindfulness practice. It builds the mental fitness we need for sustainable effectiveness.

Mindfulness has been getting a lot of attention lately in the media and it’s no wonder. It’s free, ever-available and has many proven health and wellness benefits. I’ve been using it with clients for more than a dozen years now and I see the positive results. Although I have trained colleagues in the productivity and coaching worlds about the research and practice of mindfulness, I won’t go into those details here. Instead, I’ll share with you in general how mindfulness boosts productivity and let you judge for yourself.

Mindfulness means paying attention in the present moment without expectations or preferences. It’s noticing what’s happening in our minds and bodies without thinking it should be a certain way. The aim is awareness, not relaxation or to get a clear mind, although for some people at some times mindfulness might generate those results.

BUILDING MENTAL FITNESS
Practicing mindfulness helps us build mental fitness. Physical fitness means having strong muscles, a well-functioning cardio-vascular system, and the flexibility to move with ease. By doing strength-training exercises, exerting ourselves so that our heart rate rises and our lungs deliver more oxygen, and by stretching our muscles, we become physically fit. It keeps us to be strong, healthy and energized.

​Mental fitness is quite similar. By practicing mindfulness, we develop the “muscles” of concentration and control over our own attention. Mindfulness challenges our minds the way cardio challenges our hearts. It enables us to learn about ourselves and our thinking patterns so we have a sense of perspective about them. We realize we are not our thoughts and that we have the power to discard beliefs that no longer suit. Finally, mindfulness allows us to respond to life with flexibility…to maintain a sense of equanimity, emotional stability and mental agility regardless of the situation. 

Just as physical fitness improves how our bodies function, mental fitness improves how we function in our work and lives:

• Commanding your own attention means you can recover quickly from (or avoid) distractions. You can make more deliberate decisions, including prioritizing, as a result.
• Having perspective and self-awareness means you can access your motivation and drive and shut down procrastination. It enables you to relate to others in ways that are more positive and fruitful. It also lets you know what you need in terms of self-care and boundaries, two important productivity factors.
• Having equanimity means you can respond resiliently to minor shake ups in the schedule, big problems with a project and even seemingly catastrophic events. In today’s fast paced world, equanimity may be one of the greatest assets to possess.

REALLY?
Can mindfulness do all this? It can and yet it’s not a panacea. Mindfulness will not prevent or solve all problems. It will not make every day a joyous celebration. Even experienced practitioners lose their composure sometimes and can make a mess of things. Dan Harris famously wrote that practicing mindfulness made him “ten percent happier.” Even if mindfulness doesn’t have that effect on you, it will make you at least ten percent more effective at your work. The only way to know if it will work for you is to give it a try.