Drawing from experience as Operations Director at a digital marketing consultancy and also as a Modern Meditation teacher, I want to share our how our mindset plays a huge role in our efficiency at work. We spend so much time and energy looking to understand our clients, our target audience, our competitors… but turning that attention around and focusing in on ourselves, to get a better understanding of who we are, is one of the most productive things you can do. This talk was presented at BrightonSEO in April 2019: https://www.brightonseo.com/conference-talk/meditation-for-marketers/

1. SLIDESHARE.NET/ELLAGUNSON
EFFICIENCY IN THE WORKPLACE:
MINDSET MASTERY AND MEDITATION
BRIONY GUNSON // POLE STAR DIGITAL //
@BRIONYGUNSON

2. Self Optimisation

3. BY DAY….
Ensure my colleagues have sufficient time,
resource and support to carry out their
work to the best of their ability
Operations Director
BY NIGHT…
Facilitating modern meditation courses
and workshops around stress reduction,
flow, creativity and wellbeing
Modern Meditation Trainer

4. Common sense
is not so common
Voltaire

5. Why is this important?

6. Many factors influence
our productivity and
efficiency levels. They
fluctuate all the time!
#WeAreNotMachines

7. “Working conditions and environment
can have a huge impact on mental
health and, equally, someone’s
mental health can have a significant
impact to perform well in their job.”

8. Knowing what conditions
you best work under is
very important…
But this talk focuses on
our internal environment,
rather than external.

9. Mental ill health costs employers in the UK £35 billion
every year through lost production, recruitment and
absence
*Source:Centre for Mental Health - centreformentalhealth.org.uk

10. One in eight UK employees experience
mental health problems in the workplace
*Source:Mental Health Foundation- mentalhealth.org.uk

11. Taking ownership of our
internal world

13. When we talk about efficiency, we are often
focused on the final step: output.
But our mindset has a huge influence
on our productivity…

14. All sorts of negative and unhelpful
thinking can cause us to get in our
own way

15. It is harder for us to
achieve states of
creativity and focused
attention, but it’s needed
now more than ever.
Cal Newport, Deep Work

16. Hello!
Where is your
attention right now?

17. Hello!
Where is your
attention right now?
Thanks to smart phones,
we lose our attention
6-10 times per minute
#LessThanAGoldFish

18. Understanding the value
and role of emotions

19. “Emotions” are complex
biological signals in the
body (e-motions)
“Feelings” are our
cognitive awareness and
identification of those
emotions in the body

20. We touch upon our beliefs
and values particularly
when we do creative work.

21. We touch upon our beliefs
and values particularly
when we do creative work.
This is why we often
experience a range of
emotions during the
creative process…

22. We touch upon our beliefs
and values particularly
when we do creative work.
This is why we often
experience a range of
emotions during the
creative process…

23. If feelings directly
influence our actions,
we had better have an
awareness of “who” is
at the control panel!
#SparkJoy

24. By the time we are 35 years old,
95-98% of our thoughts, feelings
and actions are pre-programmed

25. The mind is a
record of our past
experiences…

26. We so often run on autopilot…
Do you know where you’re headed?

27. What thoughts, feelings
and behaviours are you
giving your attention to?
#BadWolfGoodWolf

28. For example…

29. The everyday task

30. Where attention goes,
energy flows…

31. Our past experiences
can dominate our
present thinking and
feeling…
Emotional blockers
can cause us to get
in our own way!
Task

32. Task
Without awareness of
our mindset,
pre-programmed
thoughts and feelings
can begin to play out,
causing reactive
behaviour and
undesirable results

33. The Mind and Body Connection
Our mindset plays a huge role in our
productivity and efficiency at work.
The Mind-Body Connection
Our mind and body are a connected system;
it’s a two-way feedback loop…

34. Even mild but sustained
stress can cause a rapid
and dramatic loss of
cognitive and creative
abilities.
It also plays havoc on
our body’s systems…

35. Task
State of emergency
≠
State of efficiency

36. Top Tip: be upfront with your mindset
• Remember: a problem shared is a problem halved
• Suitable setting, right audience, e.g. trusted colleague,
line manager, senior staff, HR
• Courage, openness and patience

37. But only you can
reduce these
emotional blockers…

38. A highly effective solution?

39. Modern Meditation

41. “If youjustsitandobserve,youwillseehowrestlessyourmindis.
If youtrytocalmit,itonlymakesitworse,butovertimeitdoescalm,
andwhenitdoes,there'sroomtohearmoresubtlethings-that's
whenyourintuitionstartstoblossomandyoustarttoseethings
moreclearlyandbeinthepresentmore.

42. “If youjustsitandobserve,youwillseehowrestlessyourmindis.
If youtrytocalmit,itonlymakesitworse,butovertimeitdoescalm,
andwhenitdoes,there'sroomtohearmoresubtlethings-that's
whenyourintuitionstartstoblossomandyoustarttoseethings
moreclearlyandbeinthepresentmore.
Yourmindjustslowsdown,andyouseeatremendousexpanse
inthemoment.
Youseesomuchmorethanyoucouldseebefore.
It'sadiscipline;youhavetopracticeit.”
Steve Jobs

43. #MakeHappyWork
What is Modern Meditation?
Simple but effective practices where we
focus the attention of the mind on
different objects. Then we apply the skills
of increased awareness to every day life…

44. The Mind and Body Connection
Our mindset plays a huge role in our
productivity and efficiency at work.
How does meditation work?
A precious opportunity to reduce external
stimuli, to pause, to observe, to become
familiar with ourselves, to build the mind-body
connection and hone mental faculties –
just like building a muscle…

45. “Neurons that fire together,
wire together.”
Donald Hebb

46. When meditating, our
brain is effectively
being rewired.
It also allows body
systems to reset,
switching off the stress
response, and freeing
up energy for other
tasks, e.g. cleaning
and healing.

47. You can try it now

48. Recap of what we’ve covered

49. #1 actions are the products of our thoughts
and feelings (mindset)

50. #2 most of our actions are habitual –
pre-programmed based on past experiences
Without being
consciously aware of
our thoughts, feelings
and actions, we get
stuck in patterns of
habitual behaviour…

51. Task
State of emergency
≠
State of efficiency
#3 if left unchecked, unhelpful thoughts and
feelings can scupper our productivity

52. It is harder for us to
achieve states of
creativity and focused
attention, but it’s needed
now more than ever.
Cal Newport, Deep Work

53. #4 self observation gives invaluable insight
• Meditation
• Journaling
• Psychometric profiling
• Colleague and client feedback
• Push outside your comfort zone

55. Meditation is not a selfish thing.
Even though you're diving in
and experiencing the Self, you're
not closing yourself off from the
world.

56. Meditation is not a selfish thing.
Even though you're diving in
and experiencing the Self, you're
not closing yourself off from the
world.
You're strengthening yourself, so
that you can be more effective
when you go back into the
world.
David Lynch

57. Thank you for listening
Briony Gunson
SLIDESHARE.NET/ELLAGUNSON
@BRIONYGUNSON
BRIONY@POLESTARDIGITAL.COM
BRIONY@BEANDDO.CO.UK