Maria Arpa - Mindfulness at Work: Flourishing in the Workplace

Maria Arpa

First published in the UK in 2013 by

Leaping Hare Press

210 High Street, Lewes

East Sussex BN7 2NS, UK

www.leapingharepress.co.uk

Text copyright Maria Arpa 2013
Design and layout copyright Ivy Press Limited 2013

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be
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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from
the British Library

Print ISBN: 978-1-908005-76-2

ePub ISBN: 978-1-78240-033-2

Mobi ISBN: 978-1-78240-034-9

This book was conceived, designed and produced by

Leaping Hare Press

Creative Director P ETER B RIDGEWATER

Publisher S USAN K ELLY

Commissioning Editor M ONICA P ERDONI

Editorial Director T OM K ITCH

Art Director J AMES L AWRENCE

Designer G INNY Z EAL

Illustrator C LIFFORD H ARPER

Colour Origination by Ivy Press Reprographics

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

Most of us believe we have no choice but to work and many people have little choice about what work they do. Education, wealth and environment can dictate the options available yet we have all heard of people who are self-made, who rejected the limitations and broke through the barriers. But finding fulfilment at work doesnt always require a drastic change; sometimes addressing conflicts and relationships in the workplace can make all the difference. This book is filled with exercises, meditations and a personal two-week plan so you can learn to be mindful about work.

In an ideal world, your work would be a source of fulfilment, providing you with meaning and purpose. Too often, though, this isnt the case. When the world around you isnt performing how you would like, your choices are either a change of attitude or a change of direction. Mindfulness will help you choose.

M Y SON , S AM, IS HOME FROM UNIVERSITY and hoping to find work for the summer. Its tough. Unemployment is high right now. In his words, Im determined to find a job or Ill end up spending the whole summer on the PlayStation. His first priority is to earn some cash; but thats not all of it. He wants to do something meaningful, which is not always possible because it depends on what work is available. This creates a dilemma for many young people at the start of their working lives whether to take any job to earn money, even if the work is joyless or meaningless, or to hold out for meaning and purpose, even if it means being broke. This choice, which most of us have faced, can set a blueprint for how our working life will turn out. Many take whatever work they can get and while they are grateful for having employment, the workplace is a source of a great deal of unhappiness.

While pondering this, I came across the latest Happiness at Work Index findings that stated that one out of four people in the UK is unhappy at work. Even if this is an exaggeration, something must be wrong with our workplaces if even 10 per cent of the workforce is unhappy. For that much unhappiness to exist, we must be telling ourselves that we are powerless to change things. I know I thought that once upon a time. Many reasons were given for dissatisfaction including poor management, low pay and lack of opportunity but 48 per cent of respondents said their job held no significant meaning for them. Clearly there is a problem that needs confronting.

If you are one of the many people who are dissatisfied with their lot at work and feel powerless to change it, this book is for you. If you can understand what it is that drives your unhappiness at work, you can address it and plan for change. If you see yourself as powerless, then you are powerless but that doesnt mean you have to remain powerless. Spending many hours a day with a group of people you didnt choose to share this much of your life with, in a job you are not satisfied with, will create a pressure cooker of tension. Left unresolved, it will fester under the surface, creating stress and taking its toll on your emotional and physical well-being.

However, by using the mindfulness techniques explained in the book, you can reduce stress, develop contentment, influence your working environment and make better choices. My aim is to share what I have learned through my passionate desire to turn work into productive play.

For the purposes of this book, I define mindfulness as a conscious awareness of the present moment and recognition of what is really happening. This requires us to observe rather than judge events which is easier said than done, because we are usually unaware of the lens through which we are examining the world.

T HAT LENS OFTEN DISTORTS REALITY in order to substantiate the beliefs we hold. Mindfulness is a waking up process. It asks us to live consciously, to have regard for our sensations, feelings, thoughts and actions. A significant part of mindfulness is meditation. This allows you to become aware of yourself in the present. We learn meditation by focusing on our breathing; try spending thirty seconds right now focusing on your breathing and just slow it down a little. Mindfulness brings empowerment and self-responsibility and this leads to better self-care, decision making and participation in life. At work, it requires us to constantly review our individual and collective contribution and the results of those contributions.

Because congruity between what I say and what I do matters to me, I found myself looking back on choices I have made. I have thrived in some settings and walked out of others. In all cases I have reflected upon and learned from the experiences.

One of my more miserable recollections was a boss who, on a daily basis and without any provocation, would shout angrily across the office to the whole staff: Remember, if you dont like it here, there are plenty of people waiting in the wings to take your place. He believed that the fear of losing ones job was motivational.

What is extraordinary is that he had a dream team in place who would work all night to meet a deadline. Individually, they could each find work anywhere and probably for more money, but I had deliberately recruited a team who liked each other and could work cooperatively. This made work enjoyable for them and everyone agreed that having fun at work was more important than earning more money. What I didnt anticipate was an owner who failed to recognise that his team would be prepared to make more money for him in return for a fun atmosphere; instead he found their camaraderie a threat.