When you’re in the middle of a busy day, it can be difficult to slow down and regroup. You have too many emails and phone calls to get to, and your day is crammed with meetings. The idea of pausing to catch your breath just seems like too much.

However, there are many physical and mental benefits to slowing down—or practicing mindfulness. Being mindful at work simply means being present in what you are doing. When you are mindful, you can help reduce your stress, increase your creativity and boost your ability to absorb new information.

Susan Fowler, a senior consulting partner for The Ken Blanchard Companies, encourages leaders to look for ways to promote their team’s mindfulness.

In this issue of Promotional Consultant Today, we share three ideas from Fowler on how to encourage more mindfulness at work.

1. Use virtual meetings to your advantage. Even with sales reps filtering back to the office, Zoom meetings aren’t going away anytime soon. You can use these virtual meetings as a chance to bring mindfulness into your workday. Try incorporating music and encouraging sales reps to turn off their cameras. If you want people to just breathe or stretch for a minute, play relaxing music, suggests Fowler. If you want them to get energized, play dance music and invite them to stand up and shake it out.

Another way to promote mindfulness during virtual meetings is using quotes to lighten the mood or make people smile. Fowler points out that people learn more after laughing, so include a funny quote or meme on your next slide deck. And always end your meeting by allowing sales reps to share their ideas or insights, whether they verbally discuss them or share them through the chat feature.

2. Promote reading hours. How do you think your sales team would respond if you gave them 30 minutes of quiet time every day simply for reading or reflecting? Chances are, they would be thrilled. People who work in high-pressure, stressful jobs seldom have time to stop during the workday and read. Fowler says that sanctioning a free space for people to read pertinent publications, listen to timely podcasts or watch instructive videos demonstrates that you care about their growth and learning. You might even encourage them to practice consciously breathing during this quiet time, she adds.

3. Create mojo moments. According to Fowler, mojo moments are spontaneous experiences of choice, connection and competence. You can create these mojo moments through informal conversations. She says that for people to thrive, they need to experience the three psychological needs of choice, connection and competence. Talk with your sales reps about the choices they made that day, how those choices supported values or contributed to others’ well-being and what they learned that can be helpful tomorrow. These moments are important because they promote mindfulness that leads to greater productivity and higher sales.

Don’t wait for HR to develop and implement health and wellness initiatives at your organization. You can take steps with your sales team to encourage more mindfulness at work. Whether that means promoting reading hours or creating “mojo moments,” you can give your team time and space to pause and breathe.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers

Source: Susan Fowler is a bestselling author and a senior consulting partner for The Ken Blanchard Companies.