Becoming A Mindful Marketer

Part 1: The beginning of my journey

The brain is a tricky beast. One minute it is driving towards a great new idea

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suddenly hands are grabbing for food

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ugh, anxiety of a pending deadline

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and now the idea is back, can it be completed before the next SHIFT?

Each moment in time our brain is pulled, or pulls us, into different thoughts and emotions, that often lead to physical action. Fortunately this allows us to actually live our lives in many senses. Unfortunately we are having a more difficult time now actually understanding what and why our brain is acting the way it is at that moment. Think of how many times you’ve looked around, just today, and have no true memory of eating that sandwich, reading those texts, finishing that article, or (shudder) driving home.

Our brain is a fickle beast. When well trained our brain has the ability to communicate in a proper manner, allowing us the time to understand what and why we thought that thought and did that thing. But when met with an onslaught of different stimuli the brain then reforms itself to adapt to that situation, leading us to think, and act, in an unmindful manner. This leads to some positive attributes in the ability to multi-task, but it also leads us to negative attributes like…the ability to multi-task, not to mention poor habits around work, family, exercise, nutrition, and more.

Being mindful has entered the hype cycle, and for good reason. Many of us are trying to be more present in our lives in order to understand not only our thoughts and emotions, but also the resulting actions. Being mindful is simply the act of being present in the moment of our lives. Many folks equate that to not checking their phone while they are playing with their children. But it goest beyond that simple (ok, not that simple) exercise. When you are being mindful you are also listening to the people around you at the moment, and when your mind wanders knowing that is fine and simply noting the different thoughts and emotions that came into your head, but then shifting back to the moment at hand.

Mindful Marketing Is Hard

Fighting your way to the light

Several months ago I found both my work and my life entering a state of unmindfulness. It was then I started a regimented meditation practice, but at the beginning thought of that simply to help me in my personal life (and it has, but more on that some other time). Little did I know how unmindful my work in marketing had become. Much like the examples above there were moments where large projects and campaigns would be completed and the memory of it being done were shady.

Sit back, think about the last marketing project you just completed, whether it was copy, a press release, a digital ad campaign, or a brochure layout. Were you present in your work throughout, being mindful of each decision that was made, and when your thoughts wandered did you simply note the thought and go back to being present in your work? If yes, congrats, you are definitely ahead of me and probably many others.

Sure, one of the main problems we fact in mindful marketing is the hovering presence of notifications, multiple open tabs, or colleagues tapping on our door. But even when you shut down all those devices and go hide in an unknown corner of the office are you still able to be present in one project for a set period of time without going somewhere else in your mind and thus in your actions?

It Is Hard To Be Mindful

Before writing this post I set a goal for myself, to be mindful throughout and until I finished. During that time I kept all tabs open, iPhone on, and I’m even sitting in my home office next to my wife (who, let it be known, spoke twice to me). Did my mind wander? Of course. That is natural. The key to mindfulness was to then note the wandering and then move back to the work. Each time this happened I had an Evernote project open to keep count. Guess how many times it has happened thus far?

41 times my mind wandered during the writing of this article.

And each time I noted and came back. And now, I’m almost done.

So, what does this have to do with marketing? Imagine your customer and how hard it has become for them to be mindful. Your goal is to, via your marketing, grab a bit of their headspace. We do this today by taking advantage of many of the same things that have lead to the unmindful mind. Are we simply veering towards a never ending cycle, or are there opportunities for marketers to not only be more mindful in their own work and thus create an output that not only grabs headspace, but helps our customers be more mindful.

Cycle reversed.

My Journey To Mindful Marketing

This is only part 1 of my journey into mindful marketing and the plan is to share with you more of that journey each Monday morning. My hope is that this series will not only provide you with tips, tricks, and tools to becoming a more mindful marketer, but also the great results one sees from mindful marketing.

Interested in more details or want to engage in a deeper conversation? Email me.