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Mindfulness over mind full – an intro

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This post is part of a chapter from an upcoming book being written by Stephen Danelutti – the introductory post. Find out more about the chapter here.

mindfulnessIn an age where there is a dizzying array of options in new products and services and accelerating pace of change, we are inundated with information, choices and demand for our time and attention like never before. Not only in the commercial field are we faced with this barrage. In every sphere of life, we are faced with greater complexity as humanity advances at breakneck speed.

The growth rate of humans on the planet is staggering. As we grow and as our knowledge grows, we create and develop more. Many new developments are solutions to intractable problems. Sometimes we create just for the sake of it – consumption has almost become the means itself, instead of just the end. All this generates a need to convey information around these new developments and also a need to organise our lives around this new information. At work the need for more effective management of information and improved collaboration around it has never been greater. This applies on political, social and personal levels too.

We have established some wonderful mechanisms to help us cope with the need for greater collaboration and sharing of information. The written word in the form of books, modern day marketing, the internet and World Wide Web and machines capable of crunching trillions of bits of data every hour are all ways we have established to cope with information flows in our rising ascendency. We have also developed devices to help us cope.

The question now is not so much whether we have the tools to help us cope with the onslaught, but whether we have the mental capacity to cope. The exponential rise of information may be outstripping our mental capacity to deal with it. Artificial Intelligence and machine learning are potential solutions we have already considered and even devised. These may be the answer but that is far from certain.


The exponential rise of information may be outstripping our mental capacity to deal with it
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Studies have shown that we are inundated to the point of distraction. This could mean we are now starting to become unproductive as a result. Productivity in the western world has not improved in the last few decades despite all the advances we have made. People at all levels are being effected. The ability to multi-task is held up as a solution that we will all learn to master and supposedly the younger generations are already doing just that but this is far from proven and the contrary is often the case.

Western civilisation has been driving a lot of the most modern and advanced of technologies and innovations that are at the heart of many of the distractions. The internet and social media are a force for much good but also many of our modern afflictions, at least when it comes to focus. Could it be that it is to the East that we now look for salvation, or to be a little less dramatic, to an effective coping mechanism for all this information that is often overloading our minds. To this always on world of constant distractions. Of second by second notifications and shiny new gadget syndrome.

In an age when our minds are struggling to cope, it is through the practice of Mindfulness that we may find lasting solutions. The solutions are within reach of every one of us and don’t depend on external factors like more technology and devices to solve the very problems these mechanisms often cause. This is not a new practice and has its origins in the East. This chapter will first focus on describing in detail what Mindfulness is, followed by clear and practical coverage of each of the following topics:

  • Why might we need it or find it useful
  • What are others doing around Mindfulness
  • How might it apply at work and in your company
  • Conclusions and summary

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