You're facing tough decisions as a project manager. How can you leverage mindfulness to make better choices?

When you practice mindfulness, you're essentially training yourself to be fully present in the moment, which allows you to step back from the stress and noise of immediate pressures. By taking a few moments to breathe deeply and focus on the here and now, you can create space for more thoughtful and less reactive decision-making. Mindfulness helps you become more aware of your thoughts and emotions, so you can recognize when you're being swayed by stress or biases. This awareness enables you to assess your options with a clearer perspective, making it easier to weigh the pros and cons without being clouded by anxiety or urgency. Mindfulness can improve your emotional resilience, helping you stay calm and composed.

Awareness is the first step before we can move on. We need to know what went wrong or right to proceed to the next step. When we are too overwhelmed, we can't see things clearly. Mindfulness helps to clear the mind of extraneous thoughts and helps us make better decisions with greater clarity.

We are human beings, not human beings. But we keep running around like a clockwork bunny, never stopping almost. It's important to slow down and pause from time to time. We can check to see if we are still headed in the right direction or not. If we are not heading in the right direction, we can always make a U-turn before it's too late.

Regularly participating in exercise can lower stress hormones such as cortisol and boost endorphins which serve as natural mood enhancers. Discover an activity that brings you joy whether its taking a stroll, practicing yoga, dancing or gardening and incorporate it into your schedule.

The pressure to meet deadlines, deliver results, and keep stakeholders happy can be overwhelming at times. This constant stress can not only affect your productivity but also your overall well-being. Mindfulness offers a way to manage stress by enabling you to stay present and focused in the moment. By practicing mindfulness techniques such as deep breathing, meditation, and body scans, you can calm your mind and reduce the negative impact of stress on your decision making abilities. One simple yet effective mindfulness technique is deep breathing. When you feel overwhelmed or stressed, take a few moments to focus on your breath.

Compassion is not giving oneself a free pass. It is understanding that, as humans, we are often too tough on ourselves. By being kinder and gentler with ourselves, we can make better decisions because our mind is not too wound up.

While we cannot be present 100% of the time, being more present as often as we can will help us better respond to situations rather than react in a knee-jerk fashion. What is fast and quick may not work best in the long run. We may have to be aware, and be thinking of the decisions, not only in the present moment, but also in the future.