Hi ,
It’s easy to think of mindfulness as a personal practice.
Something to help me feel calmer, more focused, less stressed.
And it does that.
But mindfulness — especially mindfulness in context — is much bigger.
It’s how we stay aware of and take responsibility for our impact:
On the people around us.
On the organizations we work within.
On the communities we care about.
When you show up present, grounded, and aware, you don’t just change your own experience.
You change the quality of the conversations you’re in.
You change the tone of the meetings you attend.
You influence the culture you’re part of.
Mindfulness isn’t just about feeling better.
It’s about noticing the influence you have by just being in the room.
Connecting better.
Choosing better.
Especially in a world that sometimes feels designed to fragment our attention and disconnect us from each other.
When you practice mindful presence:
- Clients feel more heard and understood.
- Teams collaborate more effectively.
- Relationships seem easier.
- Decisions get made with more clarity and humanity.
- Conflict de-escalates because someone (you) stayed grounded.
Presence is contagious.
And so is reactivity.
Are you making a choice about this?
We can’t always.
That’s why it’s important to practice being mindful present, when NOT underst sress.
So you can then have the capacity to be present when you are.
When we’re being reactive to the world – we’re actually practicing being “automatic.”
And I’m not down on that – it’s necessary.
Our brains are very effective at learning to NOT pay attention unless something unusual is happening.
That’s why you have being present is a concious effort.
You make a choice to be there.
And that takes effort.
Then you you an opportunity to see more clearly, hear deeply, and experinece what is actually happening instead of the “shorthand” version offered by your thoughts.
You’ve heard – “If you’ve seen one tree you’ve seen ’em all.” That’t the shorthand.
This matters because in our lives — especially today — people are longing for something deeper.
Not just more productivity.
Not just more “success” (although both of those are great to have).
People are hungry for real connection.
For trust.
For authenticity.
And to be seen.
Recently, a client was exploring what she can do in her work sitution.
Unrealistic demands.
Unclear guidance.
That’s a setup.
She could easily be in a situation where she takes the fall when things bad.
And was completely stressed out thinking about negative outcomes.
I could see that she felt unseen and unsupported.
I played her sitution back to her. A technique I call “stacking”.
Simply. Directly. Non-judgmentally. Compassionatly.
Let’s revist your situation.
You’re stressing about what people are going to say, how they will judge you.
And you’re not getting the support you need, the clarity they are responsible to provide you.
Yet, you continue to try do a great job because that’s who you are.
She started to cry.
I asked her “what’s going there?”
She said very simply and directly, “I feel so seen.”
And that was an enabling moment for her.
She felt better and we were able to develop some strategies to help manage her state.
Presence is the foundation that makes those moments possible — personally, and professionally.
This week, I invite you to notice:
- Where could a little more presence shift the tone of your next meeting?
- Where could one mindful breath change the outcome of a hard conversation?
- Where could seeing someone deeply AND SPEAKING about it as appropriate – deepen the connection?
More soon.
Stay present — and remember:
Presence creates choice.
Choice creates opportunity.
– Brett
P.S.
When you’re ready, I have something I’d love to show you — a structured sequence of simple, powerful experiences designed to deepen your presence, strengthen your communication, and help you create more impact in your work and life. Just reply to this email. It goes to my personal inbox and I read everything I get back.