Mindfulness

What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness is observing your environment and your thoughts, without judgement or criticism. It is being in present moment and being aware of what it happening around you and within you.

Benefits of mindfulness in a high performance environment include:

• Promote flow states for optimal performance
• Minimise self-consciousness
• Change mood states
• Reduce anxiety
• Manage pain
• Manage performance pressure
• Manage work-life balance

Be Here, Now.

A common misconception of mindfulness is that it is ‘just meditation’. Mindfulness is about performing and living in the being in the present moment. Focusing on the now and eliminating distractions, or even better, performing optimally in spite of those distractions. In a podcast with Sport Psychologist Dan Abrahams, Alan Stein describes three components of ‘playing present’ that produces elite performances

Focus on the next play
You cannot control what has happened in the past or what is going to happen in the future. Concentrating on the immediate task is all you can do.

Focus on what you can control
You can control attitude toward the performance and the amount of effort exerted. Leave behind factors out of your control

Focus on the process
Life is built brick by brick. Do not focus on the outcome of your performance but rather the process and the execution of skill

Acceptance-Based Behavioural Therapy (ABT)

ABT is a form of mindfulness practice which, focuses on welcoming thoughts and emotions, without trying to change them. As we experience thoughts and emotions, we attach language to them and associate them with each other.

For example, you experience an adverse event at work, where your colleague has confronted you and expressed frustration toward you. Your response to this event will involve particular language e.g. annoying or irritating. Mindfulness helps you to create a different relationship with thoughts, feelings and events. To accept them, avoid dwelling and subsequently, enhance your behaviour in response to it in a more productive and favourable manner.


Mindfulness-Acceptance Commitment (MAC) Approach

The MAC approach was developed to enhance performance and well-being through a combination of mindfulness exercises and acceptance methods. MAC offers an alternative approach to performance enhancement. Where traditional psychological training focuses on controlling thoughts and emotions, MAC shifts the emphasis to non-judgemental awareness and acceptance of thoughts and feelings.

How does mindfulness influence psychological skills?

The practice of mindfulness encapsulates multiple components which, can advance the development of psychological skills.

Values Clarification

Practicing mindfulness can help to identify the differences between personal values and goals. This can increase focus on your ‘why’ and develop motivation

Exposure

Exposing yourself to unpleasant experiences, thoughts and scenarios and becoming comfortable with them. Mindfulness can help to confront these situations instead of avoiding them

Non-attachment

The idea that happiness our happiness is linked to achieving positive outcomes means that we are often unhappy if unsuccessful. Mindfulness teaches you to be aware of the process and detach satisfaction from outcomes

The diagram demonstrates how mindfulness facets such as attention and self regulation, develop psychological skills e.g. attentional skills and coping skills, respectively .Read the full paper (Birrer, Röthlin & Morgan, 2012)



What is the difference between mindfulness and relaxation?

Mindfulness	Relaxation
Focus on awareness of muscle tension Practice of being non-judgemental Increase of self-awareness	Focus on decreasing muscle tension Does not require awareness of present moment Decrease physiological stress