Agile teams perform better when using mindfulness techniques
Some seasoned agile practitioners understand that shifting your mindset increases focus and drives better decision-making
Whether I was in a more senior or junior supporting role, I had the same level of anxiety which, in turn, would breed low self-confidence.
I could feel my heartbeat through my chest when I knew a team meeting with a difficult stakeholder was coming up. My breathing would become shallow. My thoughts raced. It was hard to focus.
I knew there had to be a better way.
So, I started going to the gym. While in the gym sauna, I started meditating to the Headspace app. I noticed how much lighter, keener, and more focused I’d be the following day during work.
I delved deeper and started learning breathing and visualization techniques, as well, so I could work through my panic in the moment while on the clock. It has changed my personal and professional life dramatically.
I started researching for this post, wondering if other Agile practitioners used mindfulness techniques. And there are actually dozens of credible writeups on this.
The best guide I found was this one. It’s well researched and states the science behind how mindfulness techniques impact Agile project teams for the better. This study, titled “Don’t Forget to Breathe: A Controlled Trial of Mindfulness Practices in Agile Project Teams” found that
Mindfulness practices, similarly to agile practices, provide very specific patterns of action and reproducible protocols, routines that can help build mindful behaviour in organizations.
Although the data suggests that those who participated in the study experienced immediate effects, some participants stated that they would not continue to use the mindfulness practices at work, but at home. This is counterproductive thinking.
Just for the simple fact that I spent more time at work than offline (sadly), I knew I needed coping mechanisms other than just faking it and putting on my work face. I knew that if I became a calm, stable force for my team to rely on, then my team could inherently pick up the same behaviors that saved me. It made me a better leader.
Additionally, research from the controlled trial mentioned above also concludes the following:
The study showed that the higher the supervisor’s mindfulness: the higher the employees’ psychological need satisfaction, the higher the job satisfaction of the employee, the more favorable overall job performance ratings, the higher the in-role performance, and the higher the engagement with organizational citizenship behaviors. Other randomized controlled trials in this area have also shown a positive correlation between the trait mindfulness and psychological well-being, better decision making and better handling of stress
Isn’t this the reality we want our teams to have? You don’t have to gather in a circle with your team and chant the stress away. But you can make small mindset shifts together to destress and refocus.
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