Mindfulness refers to the practice of being completely present and aware of what one is sensing and feeling, without interpretation or judgment. According to Greater Good Magazine, mindfulness means maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment, through a gentle, nurturing lens.”
Mindfulness also involves acceptance, meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging them—without believing, for instance, that there’s a “right” or “wrong” way to think or feel in a given moment. When we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we’re sensing in the present moment rather than rehashing the past or imagining the future.”
Mindfulness techniques – such as meditation, mental body scan, and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy – are linked to several emotional and psychological benefits such as:
- Reduction and control over anxiety
- Removal of negative thoughts and emotions and replacing them with positive ones
- Increase in self-awareness and empathy towards others
- Improved patience and tolerance
- Increase in imagination and creativity
Mindfulness is not just helpful in our personal lives, but tremendously useful at the workplace too.
Importance of Mindfulness at the Workplace
Source: Mindful.org
Workplace stress is one of the biggest health epidemics of the 21st century, according to a report by Business News Daily. Mindfulness is beneficial as it curbs stress and tension that comes with work, while simultaneously enhancing focus, creativity, and clarity of mind.
Many enterprises are implementing mindfulness programs in their workplaces in order to help their employees deal with work stress and anxiety in the office environment. Several global organizations such as Google and Intel already provide mindfulness training to their employees.
According to the Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic, mindfulness-based techniques can significantly lower stress levels that are found in demanding work environments, leading to happier, productive, and more engaged employees at the workplace.
Additionally, it also provides health benefits to the mindful individual, as indicated by several studies. Employers are starting to adopt workplace-based lifestyle interventions such as meditation to improve employee self-care and lower illness-causing stress, helping employees control and decrease healthcare costs, and reduce absenteeism.
Advantages of Mindfulness for Employees and Employers
Source: The Tattooed Buddha
Mindfulness is much more than just nurturing your inner self and improving your mental health. Instead, it helps improve job satisfaction, enables thinking outside the box and most importantly – helps with a win-win for both teams and enterprises. Post pandemic, companies globally are facing ‘Great Attrition’ as detailed out in an article published by McKinsey and Company – ‘Great Attrition or Great Attraction? The Choice is yours’. As per the research, top three reasons for quitting were that they did not feel valued by their organizations or by their manages or because they did not feel sense of belonginess at the workplace. In our view, enabling mindfulness at the workplace can help in making Great Attrition to Great Attraction.
Here are some of the biggest advantages of mindfulness in the workplace:
- Better Work/Life Balance – The critical balance between work and life is a big factor when it comes to achieving individual satisfaction from work and accomplishing business goals. When employees achieve peace with their inner challenges and stabilize their lives, the outcomes are inherently positive.
- Enhanced Creativity – The University of Groningen, Netherlands, conducted a study that showed the link between mindfulness and creativity. Regular meditation increased problem-solving abilities in the workplace by employees.
At Max Towers, an exclusive meditation room has been created for the use of its tenants, which allows them to rejuvenate themselves in the middle of the work day as well.
Enhanced levels of creativity can help employees find innovative solutions to problems, develop new products, and redesign frameworks and processes in a smart and effective way.
Relaxation due to mindfulness can allow people to look at problems differently and use divergent thinking. The result? We consider potential solutions in the widest range possible while also selecting the right one.
- Higher Emotional Intelligence – Managers with higher markers of emotional intelligence tend to manage multiple professionals better and are greatly suited for dealing with a variety of personality types.
The implementation of mindfulness training has proven to improve interpersonal as well as intrapersonal emotional intelligence and brings in a new sense of acceptance and calmness. - Improved Focus – Our ability to focus intently and stay in that focused state is becoming increasingly challenging with the rise of digital distractions, constant use of smartphones, and exponentially increasing meetings. The use of mindfulness techniques has been shown to improve individual focus, leading to better time utilisation and higher efficiency.
- Building a Better Team – A study conducted by Frontiers Media showed that mindfulness training reduced work burnout, perceived stress and improved the well-being of employees.
Combining mindfulness techniques like meditation with team-building exercises over extended periods of time allows better results and has a lasting impact on employees.
Mindfulness is often regarded as the lifeblood for thriving employees. We emerge as better individuals, fully aware of ourselves and our shortcomings and are willing to do what it takes for our own good.
With the high amounts of pressure and stress at workplaces today, professionals must be given the opportunity to find peace within themselves and gain insight into their inner thought processes with mindfulness training.
How Max Estates Incorporates Elements of Mindfulness
Source: The Brewhouse
At Max Estates, we strongly believe in ensuring the holistic well-being of our tenants. We’re leading the charge by offering an optimal work experience via our WorkWell philosophy that is centred around enhancing and enriching your work and your life simultaneously, through careful attention paid to both physical and emotional well being elements..
Max Estates envisions an atmosphere that is built around truly enriching your work and life by implementing mindfulness into its environment allowing you to truly “WorkWell”. As a progressive developer we have paid close attention to creating a unique confluence of spaces that enable collaboration, innovation and community, to combat the mental effects of the isolation that employees underwent due to the Covid-19 lockdown.
Our modern buildings are built to host a natural environment, with an approach that fosters nature and individuals together in an interlocked and connected ecosystem. Our developments incorporate biophilia-inspired design and inspiring art to promote relaxation and recreation even while you are at work.
For instance, at Max Square, Max Estates’ upcoming development on the Noida-Greater Noida expressway, the development incorporates the elements of nature and nurture in its design. It looks to incorporate the aspect of wellness throughout the building and pays attention to the crucial elements that make up a modern workplace, including sustainability, wellness, design and a campus environment, enabling you to not just work, but flourish, and grow!
Enabling you to not just work, but WorkWell
If that sounds like a mantra, it’s because it is one!
Based on the WELL standard, the WorkWell philosophy envisions an environment built around enhancing and enriching your work, and your life.
Physical Wellbeing –
(A). Air
We look to provide the freshest air in our buildings with ESP filters. An Air Quality Monitor will capture & display pollutants PM1.0, PM2.5, PM 10, CO2, TVOC, and the AQI. Post COVID we’ve transitioned to UV installation in our AHUs as well as increased fresh air intake, ensuring you are protected from the pollutants outside and inside as well.
(B). Water
An intelligent water harvesting & recycling strategy enables us to provide safe and clean water, while lowering our impact on the environment. With enhanced focus on health, we encourage the consumption of herb and fruits infused water, provided after advanced filtration to ensure our tenants get access to only the best
(C). Sanitation
We go above and beyond the ‘required’ standards of sanitation and cleanliness, to ensure we provide the highest quality of care and germ-free environment in our developments. Deep cleaning using UV lamps, and deployment of anti-microbial surfaces, ensuring safe contact, while use of eco-friendly chemicals helps us focus on the protection of our environment as well.
(D). Nutrition
Promoting the nutrition of both body and mind, we attempt to provide seasonal-first fresh produce and portion controlled well sourced food options to our tenants, along with adequate information about healthy food habits.
(E). Comfort
Accessibility, ergonomics, acoustics and thermal considerations with humidity control have been optimised to deliver distraction-free, productive and comfortable spaces to our tenants. Every aspect of Max Square is designed with the utmost attention to detail, right from the demarcated walkway for pedestrians, to the optimally angled fins on the façade to avoid glare and reflection but allow abundant natural light.
(F). Technology
Our technology assisted workspaces pave way for modernity in the conventional association with office spaces. Through automation assisted processes for thermal screening and mask recognition via Machine learning based Video Analytics , touchless entry and exit for the building and lifts,
increased safety norms for our workforce, as well as enhanced air purification with Clairco, utmost care is taken to ensure the experience of our tenants is of the highest quality.
Emotional Wellbeing –
(A). Nature
With the integration of nature with work, Max Square allows the tenants to choose outdoors, even as they work from office. The entire development is built with a forest at its heart, enabling abundant sunshine and natural light throughout the day, with specially created restful green spaces. The design philosophy of Max Square is built around sun tracking, with the intent of minimizing the use of artificial lighting, while promoting the alertness and energy of our tenants.
(B). Recreation
Max Square combines work and play, with access to structured low impact play amenities like table tennis & chess within the premises. The development also houses an herb garden on the terrace along with a walking path for more restful exercise and rejuvenation
(C). Culture
A power packed PULSE calendar of events across various genres – music, wellness, culinary arts and cuisines, art & more, fosters a sense of cultural immersion and provides a welcome, and invigorating break from the daily routine
(D). Community
With the development acting as a crucible of tenants from various industrial, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, the events held regularly at our premises fosters organic community building across building occupants
(E). Spiritual Wellbeing
Incorporating features such as biophilia, beauty and design, Max Square provides an environment that optimizes cognitive and emotional health. While you battle work pressures, quiet calming green zones and meditation room created especially for mindful breaks allow you to decompress during the day
