Mindfulness at Work - or why you should meditate when you could eat instead?

We’ve come a long way

A meditation is when you give your mind a break from connecting, processing and learning new information which will help you concentrate better afterwards.

At this year’s Scrum Day 2019 in Filderstadt, Boris Steiner and Marcella Brebaum will offer a “mindful break – moment to recharge” during Lunch time.

Our hypothesis is that there will be a few people willing to exchange an extended 60 min lunch break, networking and eating from the really good Buffet for a shortened 30 min lunch break followed by a moment to relax and meditate in silence.

Let’s take a look back at what happened that lead to this hypothesis. While Boris already published his first blog entry on mindfulness in 2017, at this time when he handed in his abstract no agile conference would accept it. Just a year later, at Scrum Day 2018 his talk on mindfulness filled the main hall and created a lot of buzz afterwards. Since then the talk was also accepted to other conferences. The time was ripe for an article on the benefits and many shapes of mindfulness which was published at Objectspectrum in fall 2018. It seams that the interest in mindfulness is growing in the agile community.

What will we do at the mindful break?

We will gather during the lunch break. Everyone is invited, no experience required, no equipment needed. Just you. Recognizing that for some it might be their first time meditating, we have selected a guided meditation that will help you settle in. The meditation we will practice is called Bodyscan and there are many instructions online if you want to continue with the Bodyscan afterwards. Basically you will learn to let your mind wander like a scanner going up and down your body. One idea behind it is that at a conference in particular we hear and learn so many new things that our mind is constantly busy with new information and connecting dots. The bodyscan is a moment to focus on the known, your body. A break from absorbing new information and connection dots. This way you start into the afternoon feeling recharged and with new energy!

What do you think how many people will show up at the mindful break? Do you have a meditation practice at work? Feel free to leave a comment and we hope to see you at Scrum Day 2019 in our session and for a conversations at the Novatec booth!