mindful monday

scenes from saturday's mindfulness workshop in nyc

welcome to monday. and not just any monday but the first monday after the hollydaze. never an easy one. sending lots of love and respite your way.

after going to bed at 9:30pm on new year's eve and hoping the 9am bus to nyc for four days, i basked in hours of yoga and mindfulness through saturday. it was the perfect start to a new year and i'm hopeful for 2014.

i stayed an additional day in nyc to attend sharon salzberg and joseph goldstein's mindfulness at work workshop. i'm always on the prowl for new tips for doing work in a more mindful manner and today's essay will include all my takeaways from saturday's workshop. i hope you enjoy:

* how we act will bring results back to us {karma}

* all of our actions bring results based on our motivation

* the real practice is to train our heart, not follow our heart

* ask, "is this skillful or not so skillful?"

* what we frequently ponder upon becomes the inclination of our minds and hearts

* stay mindful of what is going on inside the mind or may be unknowingly strengthening non-skillful patterns

* non-skillful = unhappy, suffering

* if we're attached to that which in its nature changes, we're going to be unhapy {ex. youth, health, relationships}

* look at motivations behind speech. ask, "am i irritated, angry, truthful?"

* notice the feeling of contraction that arises and see what can be let go of to embrace a selfless nature

* need patience and self-compassion to be happy

* know what you're feeling as you begin to feel it. helps when making choices.

* mindfulness helps you know and understand motivation or intention

* ask, "what do i want to see come out of this?" get clear on motivation.

* mindfulness allows us to pause

* the gap before the action = wisdom

* just recognizing is not mindfulness. mindfulness is recognition and relating to it in a way that you don't identify with it or act on it unwholesomely.

* explore own internal process when transitioning from distress to ease

* a sense of meaning is the largest indicator of happiness at work

* it's not so much what we do as how we do it

* switch focus from anger to how we're getting hooked by anger

* as long as there is attachment to pleasant and aversion to unpleasant, there will be no liberation or awakening

* mind always confirms to the condition of the body

* accept uncomfortable emotion {such as anger}. mantra "it's ok." ask "how am i feeling in the body and mind? what might be fueling the anger?" treat anger with utmost kindness to see its roots. explore skillful ways to relate to it. anger likened to forest fire - burns up own resources.

* meditation is the cultivation of certain skills, not just stillness. walking, loving-kindness, etc. are practices. how long to stay with emotional or physical pain before shifting focus? move back and forth to save energy of extreme focus on pain.

lots of notes and takeaways. i hope these help bring about a dose of mindfulness to your monday. read along with this season's online book club pick, real happiness at work. bisous. x

{to explore mindfulness further, join the "mindfulness: tranquility within" e-course}