A little bit of mindfulness goes a long way at work, Gretchen Spreitzer tells SmartBrief
December 16, 2019
SmartBrief cites research by Center for Positive Organizations core faculty member Gretchen Spreitzer in the article “Being mindful can make you more generous to your colleagues.”
Spreitzer and a team of researchers from the United States, Great Britain, and China found that practicing mindfulness—being present in the moment—and meditation at work made workers more empathic and better able to understand each other’s viewpoints. In turn, this made them more helpful.
The good news is that doing mindfulness exercises for as little as seven to 10 minutes each day can have an impact, Spreitzer says.
“Our results suggest that the prosocial helping behavior can contribute to a service culture where employees want to help each other, but also go the extra mile to help customers too,” Spreitzer says.
Spreitzer is the Keith E. and Valerie J. Alessi Professor of Business Administration and a professor of management and organizations at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.