Mindfulness – this is a word that we hear very often nowadays. And it seems that there is no well-being or career guidebook out there that doesn´t mention it. One could easily think that mindfulness is just another hype of modern society. But I´m pretty sure that it is not.
I would even say that in nowadays hectic and overstimulated world a concept like mindfulness is a gift from heaven. But most of all, I consider it as a gift for people that live abroad or work in a culturally diverse environment. Why do I think so? Here, I´m explaining what a great tool mindfulness practice is and how we can use it to support our global business or career.
What is mindfulness actually?
Mindfulness means nothing else than being present in the moment. It means being well aware of our body sensations and of that what is happening right now. When we are mindful we observe what is going on inside us and around us but we do this in a neutral, non-judgemental way.
Often mindfulness is linked to spirituality or religion, however, it has not much to do with these. Mindfulness is a powerful tool of neuroscience that has been developed over 30 years of research. It has been proven that through regular mindfulness practice we can influence our brain waves and so change connections in our brain.
A big gain of mindfulness practice is that it enables us to make aware unconscious automatisms. When we face a stressful situation the stone-age part of our brain gives alarm and reacts immediately upon our survival mechanism with fight, flight or freeze response. For our brain it doesn´t make a difference if there is a sable-tooth tiger standing in front of us or we feel “threatened” in a confusing cross-cultural discussion. Mindfulness techniques help us to make aware these evolutionary survival mechanisms. Through focused breathing we learn to accept the present moment and so overcome the survival reflex. As a result we are able to choose our reaction consciously.
“When we practice mindfulness we’re practicing the art of creating space for ourselves—space to think, space to breathe, space between ourselves and our reactions.” (mindful.org)
How we can benefit from mindfulness when being abroad?
When we live abroad we experience stressful situations all the time. There is a foreign environment we have to adjust to… There are people from different cultures whose concepts may not always make sense to us… There is the pressure to perform in our business or job that is breathing down our neck… Mindfulness practice is a great tool to decrease a lot these kinds of living-abroad-stress and to create a life that feels light and well. So, for all people that live abroad mindfulness is a perfect stress reduction tool.
Being mindful also helps us to understand cultural differences. It´s this wonderful non-judgemental observing that allows us to realize what is actually going on in a culturally diverse situation. Mindfulness let us look closely to a situation and the people involved and recognize even minor nuances of human communication or situation setting. For example, the ability to do so plays an important role in Asia where people transfer information not only through words but also through body signals and while communicating “between the lines”. Mindfulness turns off our cultural autopilot and creates space to explore.
Speaking of non-judgemental: One of the biggest problems of intercultural relations is that we judge culturally different behavior too often and often too quickly. This happens because we don´t understand the underlying cultural concepts of the others (yet). We are somehow the victim of our own “cultural evaluation program” that runs in our mind and that we have coded over a life long process of socialization. Through mindfulness practice we are able to make aware these quick cultural evaluation automatism and – just like in the stress example – learn to overcome it. Instead of judging somebody as “impolite”, “lazy” or “incapable” based on our cultural values we can search consciously for different interpretations of the observed foreign behavior and learn to react appropriately to it. This is the point where cultural intelligence starts. And this is also where trustful relationships, successful businesses and global careers begin…
Also when arriving in a new country, mindfulness can help us to adjust smoothly to the new environment. It´s not a secret that a storm of emotions blows around us when trying to settle in a new temporary home abroad. Through training in observing our sensations and recognizing our body signals we know how quick and how often we can bear of stepping out of our comfort zone.
Last not least: Mindfulness sharpens our self-awareness and strengthens our self-concept. It is like a rendezvous with ourselves in that we get to know ourselves better. When switching between different worlds and while adjusting to new environments our cultural concept is often questioned. Practicing mindfulness helps us to continuously figure out who we are and in which direction we want to develop.
Mindfulness turns off our cultural autopilot and creates space for us to explore.
But how does it work?
First, you need to know that mindfulness is a training program, a brain-training program. So, you need to practice it REGULARLY. It is not enough to try being mindful in a stressful situation – so to say: out of the blue – and hope for amazing effects. Only through regular practice you can get rid of the stone aged survival automatisms in your brain and – build up new connections.
Studies have shown that if we practice being present and still every day for 10 – 15 minutes, our brain connections will be already changed after 2 months.
Sure, this takes time and some efforts. But no worries, mindfulness practices can be easily integrated in everyday life. And if you do so, you may also feel more settled, more fulfilled and deeper relaxed. At least this is what happened to me and many other excited mindfulness practitioners. 🙂
How to get started?
In case you have no idea at all of how to get started, here are some links and ideas for you:
Calm offers an app with a big choice of mindfulness practices. They also have some free-guided programs that are a great way to take first steps into the world of mindfulness.
At Mindful.org, founded by Jon Kabbat-Zinn, you find everything you need to know about the topic.
Mindfulness and brain training are also my favorites topics and the soul of my coaching service. Subscribe to my newsletter, if you´d like to stay informed about topics around living abroad & mindful development. I´ d be happy to connect to you!
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