Here's how you can harness mindfulness to manage stress and enhance decision-making as an executive.

The short answer is "applied neuroplasticity". Understand what your thoughts and habits are and consciously change them. Stress is a biological life insurance policy and the stress response is very maladapted in a modern work environment where there is no predator. When people are under stress, they are reacting to their own thoughts. And this is something they can control, especially if they understand how their own brains and bodies work. It is not the things and situations people are stressed about, it is their very own opinion about those things and situations. All it takes is awareness and the decision to change those opinions.

Are you having a tough day, uncomfortable conversation or are just not feeling up for it? Take a step back. Recharge. Go for a walk. Grab a coffee and stay open. What do I mean by staying open? Feel the uncomfortable. The discomfort is meant for us as much as the comfort. In the end it's all just an emotion. E-Motion. Energy in motion. Learn how you can guide this emotion in the right direction. Work WITH yourself, not against you. Take a breath, step back and watch what happens when you simply listen. - Top Tip: Think of 3 things you are grateful for right now, 3 things that brought you there and 3 things that will get you to your future goals. Always remember, no one has to suffer alone. Ask for support if you need it. ??

In mindfulness practice, we acknowledge and navigate our innate inclination to evaluate, label, and critique ourselves and others. This is what is meant by "judgment." Mindfulness is not about trying to suppress or eliminate all judgments (which is impossible). Instead, it involves cultivating awareness of our judgments or labels without becoming so entangled in them. It's about observing our inner world with curiosity and compassion. Unlike sanctimonious behavior, it's not "virtue signaling" about being "non-judgmental", or enhancing one's moral superiority (or "spiritual ego") by making such claims; but rather about fostering a deeper understanding and connection with ourselves and the world around us.

Stay in control of your own body. How? Practice. learn to monitor your breathing. learn to monitor your thoughts. You play how you practice. So if you practice being in control, you'll maintain that in stressful times.

If you have an important decision to make and area feeling pressured in the moment, wait. don't just jump to a solution. Instead, do something to stop thinking about it for a few minutes and choose a mindfulness practice to relax. Count your breaths, take a brief walk outside, look at a plant in your office and wonder how it grows. Becoming present will help you reduce stress and give your inner wisdom a chance to come forward to make the best decision possible.

If you do not train your brain to behave in a certain way, you will always react the way you have always done. Practicing mindfulness is a daily affair. Being in the present is more difficult in a stressful environment and yet it is the solution to better decision-making and a more productive environment. It can start as soon as you wake up: - use a journal to gauge how you are feeling at that moment in time and use it to set your intentions for the day. This will help you to be organised and have more control over your emotions. - use affirmations to guide you all day long - use your breath to quiet your mind and set the tone for the whole day - take small pauses in the day to just focus on your breath, body scan, or visualisations.

Mindfulness isn't just about meditation - it's being mindful to calm your mind! A deliberate walk where you look for all the small things you might not normally acknowledge, making a cup of tea and being solely focussed on the process, sitting outside with your eyes closed just listening to the sounds or feeling the warmth of the sun. Even a moment of closing your eyes breathing slow and deep while you connect to a vision of a place you love and connect to. Simple things can have a big impact.

One thing I find life-changing is taking mini moments of mindfulness throughout the day. In the rush of it all, taking just a minute turning off your phone, stepping away from your desk or whatever you are busy with. All you need to do is feeling into your body. Maybe doing a quick scan or tapping into your emotional state of being as a silent witness. This may open to the door for mindfulness through and through.

Dr Amishi Jha at the University of Miami's Neuroscience Dept says that a minimum of 12 minutes a day is necessary to reap the full benefits of the mindfulness meditation practice. She studied US Marines and found that they benefit from this stress relieving activity, restoring health and balance in a profession that requires a high level of stress and performance.

Here's a technique: while walking to the meeting, only walk. Notice the feet touch the ground and the rate of the breath. Consciously slow down the breath by breathing into the belly and exhaling longer. Then when you arrive at the meeting, feel the body in the seat and the hands - whatever they touch. No one needs to know you are practicing; this can be done with the eyes wide open.

Before a meeting that's bound to be stressful, take three deep breaths and center yourself. If you are spiritually inclined, call in your angels. You have a team of helpers who wait for you to call upon them and are always ready to assist. But they can't help unless you ask! Many of my clients have tried this and rave about the results. Even if there's no such thing, the intention will still shift your mindset and energy, helping you feel like you have support. You have nothing too lose because no one will know you're soliciting help from a higher realm. Go for it!

Mindfulness helps with interoceptive awareness. Interoception is awareness of internal sensations in the body, including heart rate, respiration, hunger, fullness, temperature, pain, and emotional sensations. These sensations also contribute to learning your stress signals. A recent study looked at traders on the London Stock Exchange and found that those with higher interoception made better financial decisions had longer careers, and had Lower heart rates, higher heart rate variability, and lower BMI. Not only does learning your stress signals help your career, it also improves your health!

Start to notice some of your physical responses so that you can interrupt the stress cycle before it disrupts you. Most everyone starts to get tension at the base of the skull. Make tiny gentle nods to help release and relieve. Maybe you clench your jaw or furrow your brow. Begin to notice the signals warning you of the stress onset. Breathe, smile, and en-Joy dispelling stress by practicing living in a more mindful way. ??

Developing awareness of your body's stress signals is the crucial first step in effective stress management. Take a moment to tune into your body: check for tension in your shoulders or neck, feel if your belly is tight, recognize if you're clenching your jaw, or notice your breathing pattern. Many people experience shallow, upper chest breathing when stressed, as opposed to the deeper belly breathing associated with relaxation. By tracking your unique stress signals and intervening early with activities like taking a walk, enjoying a healthy snack, practicing deep breathing, or doing simple stretches, you can build your stress resilience and train your brain to more efficiently overcome stressful situations.

Mindful communication means you are listening. It means you are not already answering before the other person is done talking. It means listening for the deeper meaning and emotions within the conversation, rather than shifting the conversation's path to what you need.

Honesty. Our culture pushes us to be strategic in communication - to say almost what we really mean, but not quite. To have a truly mindful conversation, be sure to bring full honesty, transparency, and your conscious awareness.

Power of the silence: When we practice mindfulness we come into the silence of the ego. We put aside the emotions and personal life stresses. We come into a space of peace within. And in that space we can hear. We can hear what coworkers are really saying, we can hear how to respond to situations and people. And we can hear the creativity flowing. Creativity for solving problems, and also creativity for creating new systems and other developments needed for the company to thrive. We shift from reacting to responding. From surviving to thriving. We become present unlike in any other way. Taking a few minutes each day to focus on our senses and simply to perceive allows us to unlock all this potential. It all hides in the silence...

Mindfulness is not always a tool to reduce stress right now. It is a practice that teaches the mind (over time) how to slow down to the very present moment halting automatic responses, and giving you the ability to recognise stress before it takes hold. It is a tool that when practiced now, reaps rewards in the future.

Go back to your spiritual roots and your through process, forget all stress management techniques: nine of them work. Read “Three Principles” Sydney Banks original books and listen to his original videos and recordings. Available on a Spotify, YouTube and Amazon globally. Follow people who achieved results through Three Principles of psychological well-being. No techniques will ever be needed. Be kind and patient with yourself and you will undoubtedly see results.

As a coach, I find that perspective is the driving force behind our mindset. Anxiety loses its grip when we stop, take a few deep breaths, then get logical with what is actually happening. Anchor in the moment and let the emotions go. This clears the mind and we are more able to be rational with our perspective. We feel more in control, so fear dissipates. And smile. Just because it lifts the spirits and that's never bad ?? ??