Given that the life expectancy of organizations has precipitously declined over the past 20 years, this question isn’t just an academic one. In fact, more than 50 percent of new business in the United States now close their doors within four years. Employers need to find effective ways to help their organizations survive and for their employees to thrive in their roles at work. This is where purpose comes in....

But perhaps its greatest achievement has been this: It has moved viewers young and old to take a look inside their own minds. As you likely know by now, much of the film takes place in the head of an 11-year-old girl named Riley, with five emotions—Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust—embodied by characters who help Riley navigate her world. The film has some deep things to say about the nature of our emotions—which is no coincidence, as the Greater Good Science Center’s founding faculty director, Dacher Keltner, served as a consultant on the film, helping to make sure that, despite some obvious creative liberties, the film’s fundamental messages about emotion are consistent with scientific research....

We all fall into habits of mind and body, of attention and inattention, which result in our not being present for our own lives. The consequences of this inattention can be quite costly. They can result in our missing some really good things, and also in our ignoring really important information and messages about our life, our relationships, and even our own health. An important antidote to this tendency to “tune-out,” to go on “automatic pilot,” is to practice mindfulness....

Our culture places so much value on external accomplishments, appearance, and self-aggrandizement—all things that are ephemeral at best—that even a small display of this quiet virtue can make one feel like a drowning man coming up for air. Yet why can it be so challenging for us to express humility? Is it because we often misinterpret its active demonstration to be a sign of weakness, when in actuality it is an indication of tremendous inner strength?...

Now, two new research studies paint a different picture, suggesting that mindfulness may also help improve the well-being of others in our lives—in particular, our children—if we truly practice it. In one study, researchers at the University of Vermont surveyed over 600 parents of children ages 3-17 to see how mindfulness related to their children’s well-being. Parents reported on their trait mindfulness (how mindful they are in everyday interactions), mindfulness in parenting (how attentive, non-judging, and non-reacting they are in interactions with their children), and positive versus negative parenting practices (for example, expressing unconditional love and setting limits versus using harsh physical punishments)....

The publicity helps, Gonzalez says, because “We’re interested in inspiring systemic change in education, here in Baltimore, and beyond.” To help with that effort, HLF’s workforce development initiative just increased the staff from 30 to 37. Atman Smith says, “We can offer training and meaningful work to people with few options. We have one ex-con who has turned his life around and is now a role model.” His brother Ali adds, “Our partnerships in other cities, like Boston and Madison, WI, are making it possible for us to replicate our success, and to create online tools to serve the entire country, and even the world....

When you’ve hit a wall at work, this video from New York Magazine‘s Science of Us suggests it’s time to go into tinker-mode. Research on creative problem solving shows people don’t spend enough time in this phase. The solution? Keep at it. People come up with better solutions the longer they spend working on them. Tinkering is key—the brain has “leaky filters,” as science columnist Sharon Begley writes. When we give ourselves the time, disparate items can sift together to form new combinations: the essence of creativity....

A great many individuals are disconnected from the sensations and feedback from their bodies. This absence of body awareness may be a result of life experience, such as trauma, or of living in a culture that has embraced a medical model in which body and mind are divided rather than being considered holistically. In the years that I have been teaching breathing techniques, I have witnessed many clients, students, and workshop participants marvel at the discovery of their full breath capacity....

I’ve often experimented with ways to weave mindfulness practice into the speed and hubbub of daily life. The premise is simple: mindfulness meets the moment, the result is being present, and that can’t be bad. It also has the benefit of undermining that recurring thought “shouldn’t I be setting aside some more time for my mindfulness practice?” Bringing mindfulness to the activities we already choose to include in our lives is a great way to start....

What Makes You Feel Empowered? “I feel most empowered when I drive down the 110 Freeway. I belt out show tunes and visualize singing to an audience of thousands.”– Grant G. “I feel empowered when I surrender. Letting go of expectations and trusting the universe is liberating and empowering!”– Joanie “When I stand up for myself.”@heatherlaurena “Knowing I always have choices! Making simple, positive choices every day to build my physical, mental, and spiritual muscles yields big results and makes me feel empowered....

Inside Mindful is an opportunity to peek inside the mindfulness field, and inside the Mindful Foundation. No, it won’t be a first-hand “reality blog” account of the food fights around the office and everyone’s missed mindfulness sessions. (Well, maybe we’ll have the occasional expose, and certainly a lot of mini-rants about the dumb stuff going on in the mindfulness world. I mean, let’s get real.) This blog will explore how this grand mindfulness adventure is going, sometimes by sharing a glimpse into some of the conversations I have with field leaders while I’m on the road....

Mindfulness Practices May Work for Some, Strategies Like Physical Exercise May be Effective for Others Mindfulness programs are widely used to reduce stress in nonclinical settings, and practices like meditation and yoga are known to lessen symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression and increase well-being. These effects are far from universal, say Cambridge University researchers after examining 136 randomized controlled trials of mindfulness interventions. Some studies reported reductions in stress, anxiety, and depression, while others showed little to no effect....

Physical Exercise: The Benefits and Risks Physical exercise is a popular pursuit. Gyms and fitness classes are everywhere. Books, magazines, and blogs tell us how to get stronger and fitter. Public health campaigns encourage us to exercise more, and wearable devices and apps enhance motivation by keeping track of physical activity. There are good reasons for this enthusiasm. Research shows that exercise improves many aspects of physical and psychological health. It strengthens the heart, lungs, bones, and muscles....

Using a felt board I then ask the kids to come up and choose one felt figure from the table and place it on the felt board. I start by showing them how to put the figures on the board and I start off by perhaps putting up the corn figures first. Next, one by one, the kids come up to the board and choose a figure and tell us how it is connected to the picture as they press it onto the felt board....

Ed is just about to launch his 6th four-week mindfulness series, this one titled Mindfulness: The Adventure of Living Well. The first time he ran this series was the most successful program NCE had ever experienced, and it continues to very popular. The program takes place on May 2, 9, 17 and 23 and is held at Newton South High School, 140 Brandeis Rd, Newton Center, MA, at 7 p....

Widen the Window Training Your Brain and Body to Thrive during Stress and Recover from Trauma Elizabeth A. Stanley • Avery Liz Stanley—a graduate of Yale, Harvard, and MIT; a retired military officer; and an associate professor of security studies at Georgetown University—readily admits to operating in overdrive. Early in Widen the Window, she lets us know that a Stanley has served “in the US Army every generation since the Revolutionary War, including on both sides of the American Civil War....

It’s so true and here’s how. Our inner voices can be a real pain sometimes, critiquing us, telling us what we can’t do or what will go wrong if we try. We wouldn’t want friends that spoke to us this way, so why do we tolerate these voices? They create irritability which only goes onto reinforce the A-holes in our minds. As I mention in my upcoming book, Uncovering Happiness, this is a big part of what drives the depression loop....

Overall, results indicate that kindness and compassion can benefit mental health and well-being in youth. These effects were generally stronger in research with younger, healthy children and those that used experienced meditation teachers. Mindful With Autism The feasibility and impact of a virtual, group-based mindfulness intervention designed for adults with autism was explored by researchers in Toronto. Based on feedback from adults with autism, the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program was modified to include six weeks of 60-minute sessions, shorter meditation practices, and no full-day retreat....

Jensen certainly didn’t need to read the latest study about the impact of stress on teens: her daughter and her friends were a living, breathing testament to it. It was December 2008, and Jensen and her 16-year-old daughter had just returned from the funeral of a high-school friend who had been murdered during an alleged drug-related incident. Of the group seated in Jensen’s kitchen after the funeral, one of the teens was addicted to oxycodone, one was so anxious she vomited every morning before school, and another was on medication for depression....