Three Research-Backed Benefits of Mindfulness at Work

Research says mindfulness works for individuals. But does it work in the bottom-line-driven workplace, or is it just a frivolous feel-good program?

This is the question tackled in a growing number of studies. Here are three benefits to mindfulness on the job.

1. Mindfulness can build self-confidence in leaders

A.D. Amar and colleagues at the University of Westminster measured the self-perception of leadership skills among a sample of senior managers in the London area—and then put them through a 12-week secular meditation-training program.

Their results, published in the Academy of Management Proceedings, revealed that training significantly enhanced their overall self-confidence, as well as the individual skills like inspiring a shared vision and demonstrating moral intelligence.

“However,” conclude the authors, “meditation did not statistically significantly enhance participants’ skills as a role model and enabling others to act”—areas that will need more study in the future.

2. Mindfulness can help us withstand controlling bosses

The more mindful the supervisor, the lower their employees’ emotional exhaustion and the higher their job satisfaction, according to research published in the journal Mindfulness. But that study also revealed a…