Month: January 2023

I asked the focus group of experts what barriers would have to be considered when supporting entrepreneurs to see the potential value of mindfulness. Here’s what they said.

Some Entrepreneurs Don’t See it as a Priority

Entrepreneur Carl said many entrepreneurs don’t see mindfulness as being important. “ Their perception is they are too busy or too focused on cost savings to recognise the opportunity investment in development can bring.  Real and tangible results I find tend to interest business owners.”

It May Be Seen as a Burden

Carl adds that being mindful and prosocial is often viewed as a burden. “ I think it is an opportunity and to encourage people, if they are going to be mindful or social, get them to recognise it is an opportunity not a burden.”

Some People Are Generally Not In Support Of Mindfulness

Some entrepreneurs won’t be in support of the idea of mindfulness, says business adviser Sharon. “ Though the entrepreneurs we see tend to be quite aware of mindfulness so I would say the barrier is that it is being broken down socially more widely.  There is more awareness those are the minimum standards now, and the benefits of these things in terms of being able to keep going for longer, with a sense of purpose and actually being fulfilled in what you do…and yes the economic benefits that brings to how you operate and the creation of value more widely.”

There’s A Stigma Associated Due To The Connection With Mental Health

Entrepreneur Ali feels mindfulness brings with it a stigma, due to its association with mental health. “ Mindfulness is relatively new and has been used as an aid to deal with mental health problems, so there is a stigma. The association is that it’s used to help prevent people from falling apart.”

Business adviser Sharon adds that putting mindfulness in context is also important. “ There are different contexts. What does mindfulness mean in a business context? What does mindfulness mean personally?  The definitions are huge, it is subjective in a way.”

There’s A Lack Of Understanding About Mindfulness

Alex, from a business support organisation, thinks there’s a lack of understanding around mindfulness. “ Do you think people understand what mindfulness is though? Because I think it is a word that is bandied around a lot, especially by celebrities, they think they are being mindful -but are they? What does it actually mean? Therefore, there needs to be a greater understanding of what it is because it can easily become something it is not. We need to understand what it is before we can help anyone.  We need a clearer definition.”

There’s A Perception Of There Being Gender Stereotypes

Business adviser Sharon feels there are gender stereotypes when it comes to practicing mindfulness. “ The mindfulness stuff is seen as not what a ‘real man’ does. …I don’t mind mindfulness, I actually quite enjoy it, I think it works, I think it has benefits.”

Effort Is Required To Introduce Mindfulness

Business network leader Scott feels that the fact effort is need to introduce mindfulness is a potential barrier. “ What about the effort involved?  Lots of businesses are under pressure and time is a scarce commodity for some people, and this pressure to be mindful about everything that is happening within your organisation dos stake a certain amount of effort.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I asked the focus group of experts how I could best design an intervention that supported entrepreneurs to see the potential value of mindfulness to both themselves and their organisation. This is what they said.

Use Case Studies

Entrepreneur Carl suggested the use of case-studies. “ Use case studies and testimonies to convince them of the benefits followed by practical advice.  You could also show them evidence of organisations and individuals who have implemented some mindfulness-based interventions and what it has done for them, and the people they work with. I think purposeful case studies would be really helpful.”

Separate Mindfulness From The Prosocial Agenda

Carl adds that mindfulness should be separated from any prosocial agenda. “ The idea that they may become more prosocial, they might get frightened by that.  A lot of them are driven by money, they are thinking about the commercial success of their company, then introduce the social aspect later on.”

Use Examples That Relate To Entrepreneurship

Carl also thinks that the use of examples of how mindfulness benefits entrepreneurs would be helpful. “ I think particularly through the lens of entrepreneurship and perhaps how to manage risk, that is a big consideration for entrepreneurs as they tend to be risk takers.  It is knowing when to cap that instead of being so risky that you have lost everything you worked for.  So I think try to show them the difference mindfulness can make rather than just tell them and put forward the case that mindfulness can help them manage risk and lead to better decision making.  I think that would speak the language of entrepreneurs.”

Include Opportunities For Experiential Learning

Entrepreneur in training Ali said there should be a chance to do the intervention in their own way and in their own time. “ If it is too regimented, people lose sight of it.  I would say that you could introduce it, that they could do it in their own time in a way that is casual, so routine but not regimented.”

Link It To The Mental Health And Wellbeing Agenda

Alex from a business support organisation feels that it might be helpful to link the intervention to the mental health and wellbeing agenda. “ There’s a need to have Mental Health First Aid to identify where mindfulness would work, where people might need more help, and building that into annual appraisals and one to ones with your manager.”

Entrepreneur Carl agrees that it should be linked to wellbeing. “ Concerns about people’s health and well-being in organisations, whether sole trader, entrepreneur, or working in large organisations it is huge and it is going to for huge for some time.  There is going to be a massive increase in debilitating conditions through a lack of emotional well-being. Employers are very aware of this and people are not really sure how to deal with it. Mental health services are really concerned about how to cope with increased demands.   Mindfulness factors into that, again at this moment in time there is a lot more focus and might then be some coordinated approaches that structures this into organisations.

Carl adds that entrepreneur wellbeing needs to be a strong focus “ How can we support sole traders and entrepreneurs not to beat themselves up all the time, thinking they have got to be working at 150%? Need to take time to consider that. It is a very hot topic and will be for some time.”

Encourage Practice

Business adviser Sharon feels mindfulness practice should be encouraged. “ It is a lot harder to stick with something if you only do it once and then leave it.  So reminding them, making it something they have to do, to stick with it, not formal but also you can opt out for a period of time so that they can start seeing the benefits. I think with mindfulness when you start doing it and it is something you have done for a while, then it something you naturally start to do yourself and to think about it in terms of what would make me happy, what do I actually need to do now, and things like that.”

Develop Self-Awareness In Entrepreneurs

Commercial trainer Graham says there should be a focus on developing entrepreneurs’ self-awareness. “ Humans- we think, feel, behave, act, react to people, places and things – these dictate success.  Start with self, how I feel and behave.”

Explore Emotions

Graham adds that developing emotional awareness and intelligence is also important. “ We don’t talk about feelings enough.  How do we then provoke social consciousness? How do we encourage people to ask the questions, how do I feel about this experience, can I try something different?

 

 

Supporting Entrepreneurs to See the Value of Mindfulness- Overall Approach

The next research theme I took to my focus group of experts was ‘How can entrepreneurs be supported to see the potential value of mindfulness to both themselves and their organisation?’

Here’s what they said.

Be Flexible

Business adviser Sharon suggests there’s a need to avoid being prescriptive. “ It’s about not being prescriptive, it’s about recognising what mindfulness is for that individual within the work environment.”

Explain The Tangible Benefits

For entrepreneur Carl, emphasis needs to be given to the tangible benefits of mindfulness. “ I believe this comes down to time, unless there is a clear value, perhaps in a broader sense to the entrepreneurs, with tangible and real outcomes, they are unlikely to engage purely from an academic point of view.”

There Needs To Be Link To Ethics

Carl adds that there should be an awareness of ‘mental health washing.’

Make It Relevant

Carl believes there needs to be a move away from a mental health focus. “ You need to look at the wider benefits, its impact on relationships, productivity. Talk about it from their point of view.”

Bring People In From The Margins

Carl also sees a need to bring in people from disadvantaged backgrounds. “ In poor communities, I think there is no other option but to survive through enterprise.  Take that from the margins to the norms and allow it to flourish in the mainstream, and again structural injustice around access to support can keep people in the margins, and there is huge opportunity to unleash great entrepreneurs in our poor communities if you allow people to do it and have it driven by them.”

Consider The Argument For Combining Mindfulness And Prosocial Agendas

Claire from an organisation supporting social entrepreneurs says there’s an argument for combining mindfulness and prosocial agendas. “ Actually, being mindful and prosocial are great assets for the modern-day entrepreneur and it is not this outdated notion of it being “Oh no, not something else you are expecting us to do.” I think that is the problem, you teach people there is a cost to being kind and respectful to suppliers and customers then you are immediately getting off on the wrong foot.  The best way to do that is to demonstrate the success, the growth, the profitability, the viability, resilience, diversity, and success ultimately of being both mindful and prosocial because certainly all of the evidence that I get is that it makes for happier entrepreneurs and makes for more sustainable and better business.”

Normalise It

Business Adviser Sharon thinks that normalising mindfulness makes sense. “ I think a lot of misconceptions probably come from people not having it taught to them or spoken about to them in their day-to-day lives.  I think if it is something people are naturally doing and have been doing, then it is something they start to understand a lot more, and this reduces the chances of those misconceptions.”

Be Clear On The Benefits

Entrepreneur in training Ali said there’s a need to be clear on the benefits of mindfulness. “ If you’re trying to sell it, be really clear on what the benefits are.”

Address Misconceptions

Business Adviser Sharon sees the misconceptions around mindfulness as a stumbling block. “ The main stumbling block is the social norm of it all, what people think it is compared to what it actually is, so if you start with ‘this is how it can really help you, how it can change your life,’ then people will start to listen.”

Consider Its Application In Organisations

The focus group had a lot to say about the application of mindfulness in organisations.

Scott, from a business support network, acknowledged that mindfulness has become current in organisations with regard to managing thinking.

Business adviser Sharon says more mindfulness in organisations is a good thing. “ If there is more mindfulness in organisations to increase that mental awareness capacity then it is a good thing.”

Alex from a business support organisation wondered if being mindful would bring added pressure to businesses. “ What about the effort involved?  Lots of businesses are under pressure and time is a scarce commodity for some people, and this pressure to be mindful about everything that is happening within your organisation does take a certain amount of effort.”

Entrepreneur in training Ali thinks that introducing mindfulness into a business needs to be something that entrepreneurs want to do. “ I think bring in somebody who is an expert in it and they can actually demonstrate and then it is up to the workplace to make their own informed decision, but you cannot force it on people. Then it is not natural, it is not going to work, it has to be something people want to do.”

Alex agreed with Ali’s statement, adding that their needs to be some flexibility. “ The other business difficulties and complexities organisations need to manage does not always mean you can set things in stone, there has to be flexibility there.”

Acknowledge The Limitations

Business adviser Sharon says it’s important to achieve balance by acknowledging the limitations of mindfulness. “ Where there is a deficiency then mindfulness helps all sorts of organisational cultures and then there is an optimal point, you have to have balance.  There are mindfulness practices going on, you are aware of the importance of it and the development of the workforce…and it was too much of a good thing. It became detrimental when they were pumping it down people’s throats and there was not a lot of focus on anything else, knuckling down to perform the task at hand.”

Consider The Role Of Business Support

Sharon adds that there’s a need to look at how important prosociality is within the role of business support. “ Is it fundamentally part of what an entrepreneur should be?  Should we be pushing it with start-ups or does it sit within business support?

It is not up to us, we work with them to set their own values and their own mission and goals, it is up to them if they adopt it or not. We can give clear guidance, but we need to understand what it is, but people are not going to practice unless they believe in it, because it is not part of their world, it is not for them.”

I asked the panel of experts in my focus group interviews was ‘how can we make the intervention part of an eco-system of support? Here are their responses.

Encourage Collaboration

Business adviser Sharon pointed to the importance of building relationships to encourage collaboration. “ I think what we are talking about is an eco-system of business support and it has not evolved, it is static. It is about building and developing and maintaining those relationships and those partnerships and opportunities for joint working.”

She adds that sometimes joining forces with others is not easy. “ It can be a difficult thing for us to build bridges.  We are not always great at celebrating other people’s success, are we traditionally? It is something we need to be.  Maybe that is what will happen as people become more aware that we are far more than a single part and that by helping other people, this splashes back on their own areas.”

Encouraging Entrepreneurs to Support Each Other

Alex from an organisation providing government-funded support said that his organisation is asking businesses to support each other on a daily basis. “ We are asking businesses to support one another, we are asking them almost on a daily basis.  In new projects, we are asking other team members to get involved and they are happy to do that. There is insightful stuff on LinkedIn that people are sharing that you would never have imagined them sharing, helping everyone to grow, not only being seen as ‘that person’, but really showing an interest in helping other people succeed.”

Finding New Ways of Working Together

Alex adds that finding new ways to work and collaborate is important. “ We have evolved different ways of working together, valuing contributions from others, collaborating, and technology has been one of the best examples. How we have all jumped into Zoom, how networking has evolved, business to business interaction and across the whole landscape, it is changing so quickly.”

There’s a Need to Move Away from Competition

Business adviser Sharon said that she sees entrepreneurs working together and sharing information now more than ever. “ It is interesting to go back to the “dog eat dog” world, 3-5 years ago.  It was all ‘You have got to be aggressive, you have got to be tenacious, you have got to be all these things to be a top-tier business person,’ and you would think at the time of a pandemic it is going to be survival of the fittest and it is going to get nasty, and people are going to be fighting to achieve, to be top of the pile, and the opposite has happened. It’s the ‘be kind ‘mentality, the working together, sharing together that has really succeeded and I can see that.  If you had asked me on paper what I predicted it would not have been that, it would be the other way round.”

Developing Communities Of Practice

For the intervention to be a worthwhile part of the eco-system of entrepreneurial support, it’s important to develop of communities of practice that include mentoring and training, said commercial trainer Graham.