Starbucks, Mindfulness, and Engagement. Starbucks is probably one of the most mindful companies on the planet. They have created incredible experiences, all repeatable, and their staff continues to be on the forefront of mindful engagement and interaction. Mindfulness, and Engagement is the strategy behind the closure of 8,000 company-owned stores in the United States on the afternoon of May 29th. They will conduct racial-bias education geared toward preventing discrimination. The training will be provided to nearly 175,000 partners (employees) across the country and will become part of the onboarding process for new partners.
For so many people mindfulness is a topic mostly associated with silence and solitude. But, in the case of Starbucks, we can see how this practice can be used to engage and connect with not only our own lives but the lives of others as well. Mindfulness in business, at the office, at home, or with everyone that you talk to or meet, can help build strong relationships. With it, you can disengage from past or future concerns, and engage with the present, with the people right in front of you. All relationships are personal, for business, home, or family life, and high functioning engagement is necessary to be successful. Caught up in our daily stresses and busy activities, we can lose perspective, resulting in mindlessness. Starbucks is just one example of the crisis of disengagement that we are seeing all over the world today. In this short article, we will share a quick mindfulness S.N.A.C.K that contribute to mindfulness and engagement.
- Approach: Mindful employees realize that customer relationship, any situation, event or conversation, can have a positive or negative impact on them and the business. If they are quick to judge or speak on impulse, before listening and thinking the issue might just escalate and be a national news story. When you have mindful employees they cultivate the ability to step away from a situation, gain recognition, and make the right choices. They can back away from a challenging situation. assess and address it with curiosity and kindness. The S.N.A.C.K graphic, created by Carla Naumburg, is a great tool to use to Stop, Notice, Accept, have Curiosity and use Kindness before acting. Is there right speech, right thinking, right working and right action?
2. Action: We can move mountains, but we need to bring shovels. Getting help and having the right tools are essential to choose a sensible course of action. Notice the who, what, where, when, why and how of the moment. Dig deeper, get feedback, and with awareness act with kindness. You can be better prepared and informed to engage and do so with confidence.
3, Reflection: Actively reflect upon what just happened on the road of engagement. Was the impact positive or negative? What is the assessment of the action that just took place? What lessons can be learned and can we re-calibrate to adjust our actions and apply it to the next opportunity for engagement? With a mindful engagement approach, you must also have the willingness to adjust and modify your approach. It requires a willingness to be vulnerable, open and honest. Successful individuals and companies learn and grow stronger through adversity, honest, open and willing reflection and conviction to change.
Mindfulness improves our awareness and tolerance in challenging moments, where emotions can overtake rationale engagement. Stress, emotional challenges, and busyness can overtake reason and logic, making meaningful engagement challenging. Mindfulness slows us down and helps us to take a moment and rather than quickly reacting out of fear or pressure, we can engage with kindness.