Feliz Consulting

  What is mindfulness? Mindfulness is rooted in meditation and buddhist practices and it has become a popular form of therapy and pain reduction program, especially in the recent decades. In 1979, mindfulness was popularized by Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts to treat chronic pain. Based on his background in zen practice and his research, John Kabat-Zinn realised the potential of meditations practices in the medical field, hence his inspiring work emerged and started making a huge impact on people’s lives. But what is it, really? Mindfulness is the ability to stay fully present, aware of ourselves and our surroundings non-judgmentally. We may have experienced mindfulness accidentally, perhaps when enjoying a beautiful scenery, or when looking at a child playing, or a moment of total focus at work but many of us tend to stay in autopilot mode, not as aware and focused. Mindfulness teachings and practice help to bring the state of a consciou...

“How are you doing today?” We often greet each other this way. But, truly, how are you feeling today? As we go through a time of unprecedented change; signs of stress and anxiety may creep up on us from different directions. Therefore, an “ordinary” greeting can mean a lot more than the ordinary, if it’s thoughtful and sincere, a “How are you really feeling today?”, “Let’s talk about it”; “I hear you”; “We’ve got each other”; can make a huge difference. According to The Mental Health Foundation in the United Kingdom, the week of 10-16 May is “Mental Health Awareness Week” [1]. In line with this, it is no coincidence that we are seeing more awareness campaigns, quotes, stories, yoga classes, camping and outdoor activities on social media showing the growing importance of wellbeing. In addition to the outdoor activities and exercises we do, what could we say about our inner self? What about our mental strength? Resilience? Mindset?  All of these profoundly affect our day-...

Many companies are experiencing an increase in multiculturalism. The work from home new norm helps to further propel this trend, connecting employees from different regions and different time zones more often than ever. While we enjoy the benefits of cross culture communication, such as better knowledge sharing, gaining more perspectives and ideas, we are also exposed to some down sides. What are these down sides and how can we address them? But also, what are some of the key benefits? Some of the most common obstacles to a collaborative and successful team is the lack of cultural awareness and empathy, persistent unconscious biases , as well as conscious biases and stereotyping. Considering how our world and work are even more connected these days, we find it important to address this rising trend. What are the benefits and importance of multiculturalism? Creativity Having employees bring different perspective is a crucial resource for a company’s success. Based on research, a...

What does science has to say about positive emotions at work? The study of positive psychology and organizational psychology look at these topics in details. Through research, we are provided with concrete evidence that positive emotions are more than just personal moods, but actual factors for positive change in a team and organisation. What types of positive emotions are good for work? According to Professor Barbara Fredrickson and her 15-year research program, productivity and workplace satisfaction can be enhanced with 10 positive emotions. Here we describe a few that we find particularly useful for you to have in the workplace: Joy - joyfulness makes us want to “play” and get involved, which is particularly important for learning skills and experiential learning. Gratitude - being grateful allows us to appreciate and be generous to others, hence we can build better social bonds and relationships at work. Hope - Being hopeful is a great attribute to inspire optimism in dire circum...

Think of the last time you took up an exercise plan or that time you decided to quit a bad habit - how did it work out for you? Many of us have experienced obstacles in fostering good habits and getting rid of bad ones. However, none of us should stop ever trying. But how can we do it better? According to research, nearly 40% of our daily activities are habitual. So, instead of leaving this big portion of life to autopilot mode and standard habits, we can actually do better and program the content of repetitive behaviours to work for us, coach ourselves in a better way. Here in this brief piece, we would like to share some ideas on how to change habits more effectively and be happier. What is a habit? Firstly, let’s understand what a habit is. In psychology, a habit refers to a process where actions are triggered automatically in response to mental context that are learned through prior experiences. A habit comes in the form of automatic actions in order to spend minimum mental resourc...

  With the Equal Opportunities Commission’s Youth Ambassadors We also received great feedback from the students who attended the workshop! “Today’s meeting was impressive and practical. I’ve been wanting to improve my speech for a while now and this presentation has thought me important things - handling nerves, proper posing, and engaging audience. I’d love to have EOC hold more workshops similar to this.” “Today’s training was great. I learnt a lot such as how to be relaxed, confident and professional when giving presentation. It was fun. Mônica was so friendly and also engaged with the class. I like her so much. In today’s class I learnt so many skills!” “This workshop is easily one of my favourite so far. The presenter was really knowledgeable about public speaking and gave us tips relevant to our background.” We really enjoyed this opportunity to partner with the EOC and work with such enthusiastic individuals! Original content posted on https://www.felizconsulting...