We invite Dr David Paul Unit Convenor at AIM Business School to discuss Mindfulness and the innovative new AIM Business School MBA Mindfulness elective. Dr Paul has over 25 years’ experience teaching Mindfulness techniques to some of Australia’s top leaders and Global Executives. In our interview, we explore the practice and benefits of Mindfulness and how we can apply these learnings in a leadership content – both in the workplace and in our personal lives.

Q. Can you tell us more about Mindfulness and what it means?

A. The art of Mindfulness is simply developing the ability to calm or slow down the mind to access its full potential. By accessing the full potential of our mind, we harness our thoughts to achieve much greater outcomes. Outcomes such as our ability to:

• Focus on the present moment
• Purposefully concentrate on what’s happening around you
• Avoid judgemental tendencies or labelling things as ‘good’ or ‘bad’
• Develop sharpness and focus rather than vagueness and distraction
• Master stress that may be generated

Q. Can you explain the benefits of Mindfulness? How can it improve our everyday lives?

A. It’s interesting to see how Mindfulness has gained momentum in the business world. Corporate companies such as Deutsche Bank, Google, IBM, NAB, Nike, and Procter & Gamble have all adopted mindfulness practices in the workplace. We now have the ability to do something we never thought was possible — to see how these practices change the wiring and the makeup of our brains. Mindfulness has been proven to deliver the following benefits:

• Reduce stress
• Lower blood pressure
• Lower anxiety levels
• Improve memory
• Improve efficiency
• Increase awareness
• Increase attention and focus
• Increase clarity in thinking and perception
• Enable greater control over your everyday environment

Q. How are leading global businesses implementing Mindfulness?

A. Mindfulness is a growing trend in the business world. Many of the world’s largest organisations have put Mindfulness on the agenda and are making visionary moves to invest in their employees. Some of the world’s most innovative businesses have even gone as far to appoint a Chief Mindfulness Officer. So, what are these businesses doing? Well, Tech giant Google developed a global program in Mindfulness. And that’s just one example. British House of Lords have an oversubscribed Mindfulness Program. IT powerhouse SAP Software & Solutions have recently invested a large amount of resources to embed Mindfulness throughout their company. The World Economic Forum found that Mindfulness is by far the most subscribed topic of interest.

Q. Can you tell us more about the AIM Business School MBA Mindfulness elective?

A. AIM Business School has developed a pioneering Mindfulness elective as part of the MBA program. Students enrolled in this unit gain the ability to:

• Develop a comprehensive suite of Mindfulness tools to deal with organisational culture, leadership and strategy
• Implement a unique Mindfulness model or framework that creates productive workplaces
• Utilise Mindfulness Practices to think innovatively and demonstrate creativity and flexibility, supported by research, when dealing with everyday challenges in the workplace
• Develop self-awareness and demonstrate creative thinking skills
• Demonstrate creativity and flexibility in the application of ethics, knowledge and skills to new situations, to resolve problems and to think rigorously and independently
• Use the research of Neuroscience to master self-management and the management of others more effectively

Q. How can Mindfulness benefit my organisation?

A. Mindfulness implemented by senior leaders and set in an organisational context can be highly beneficial to: Improve leadership and management throughout the organisation. Improve an individual’s health and wellness. When effectively applied to daily work, and put into the context of larger corporate objectives, it can be the foundation for enhancing performance and I believe, the key to real organisational effectiveness. And raising profits.

Looking for further information on the Mindfulness elective as part of our MBA program? Download the program guide.

About David Paul

Dr David Paul has over 25 years’ experience as an educator, senior advisor, mentor and coach to c-suite executives, CEOs and Heads of Government. He is an expert at Business Consulting, Strategy Development, Complex Change Management, Organisational Culture, Corporate Communications, Large-scale multi-Program and Project Management & Executive Management Education.

Dr Paul has a natural ability to work with people to bring out their best. He has lectured to over 25,000 MBA and Exec MBA candidates ranging from senior managers and executives to leaders, directors and Senior Executive Service in Government. Dr Paul has conducted and facilitated over 1,500 retreats, seminars and workshops in complexity, change, culture, mindfulness and leadership.