Summary
When we think of work, we often think of drudgery, frustration, and stress. For too many of us, work is the last place in our lives we expect to experience satisfaction, fulfillment, or spiritual growth. In this unique book, Michael Carroll-a meditation teacher, executive coach, and corporate director-shares Buddhist wisdom on how to transform the common hassles and anxieties of the workplace into valuable opportunities for heightened wisdom and enhanced effectiveness. Carroll shows us how life on the job-no matter what kind of work we do-can become one of the most engaging and fulfilling areas of our lives. At its heart,Awake at Workoffers thirty-five principles that we can use throughout our day to revitalize our work as well as our understanding of ourselves and others. Carroll invites readers to contemplate these slogans and to use them on-the-spot, in the midst of work's chaos, to develop clarity, wisdom, and inspiration. Along the way, Carroll presents a variety of techniques and insights to help us acknowledge work, with all its complications, as "a valuable invitation to fully live our lives." In an engaging, accessible, and often humorous style,Awake at Workoffers readers a path to rediscovering our natural sense of intelligence, confidence, and delight on the job.
Author Biography
Michael Carroll is the founding director of Awake at Work (AAW) Associates, a consulting group that works with organizations and individuals to help them rediscover balance and well-being while pursuing professional success. For over two decades Carroll worked as a human resources professional, holding executive positions at Shearson Lehman Brothers, Paine Webber, Simon & Schuster, and the Walt Disney Company. He is a longtime student of Buddhism and an authorized teacher in the lineage of the Tibetan meditation master Chögyam Trungpa. Michael continues to work in corporate settings and has taught mindfulness meditation at the New York Open Center, the Omega Institute (assisting Pema Chödrön), and the Wharton School of Business.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments |
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xi | |
Getting Started: Work's Invitation to Wake Up |
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1 | (24) |
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Cultivating Mindfulness at Work |
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10 | (8) |
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Contemplating the Awake at Work Slogans |
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18 | (7) |
PART ONE The Four Primary Slogans |
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1. Balance the two efforts |
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25 | (7) |
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32 | (10) |
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42 | (8) |
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50 | (7) |
PART TWO Developing a Composed Attitude |
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5. No ground, no guarantees, just now |
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57 | (5) |
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62 | (4) |
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7. Your present job is going away |
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66 | (4) |
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8. Step beyond the silence of fear |
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70 | (6) |
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76 | (5) |
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81 | (4) |
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85 | (5) |
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12. At times of risk and stress, cultivate stillness |
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90 | (6) |
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13. Cultivate "kitchen sink" mentality |
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96 | (3) |
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99 | (3) |
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102 | (7) |
PART THREE Working with Others |
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109 | (5) |
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17. First to pacify, last to destroy |
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114 | (11) |
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125 | (4) |
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19. Practice "no credentials" |
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129 | (6) |
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20. Cultivate the art of conversation |
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135 | (6) |
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21. Avoid idiot compassion |
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141 | (5) |
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22. Study the six confusions |
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146 | (10) |
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23. Extend the four composures |
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156 | (5) |
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24. Everybody just wants to bounce their ball |
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161 | (5) |
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25. Treat everyone as a guest |
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166 | (4) |
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26. Witness from the heart |
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170 | (7) |
PART FOUR Acting Precisely |
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177 | (4) |
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28. Appreciate the intimacy of morning routines |
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181 | (3) |
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29. Acknowledge small boredoms |
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184 | (4) |
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188 | (6) |
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194 | (6) |
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32. Be humble while ambitious |
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200 | (4) |
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33. Notice and cut work's speed |
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204 | (5) |
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34. Take a fresh glimpse and adapt |
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209 | (4) |
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213 | (8) |
APPENDIXES |
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Instructions for Mindfulness-Awareness Meditation |
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221 | (4) |
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Instructions for Contemplating the Slogans |
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225 | (3) |
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Contemplations-in-Action on Wealth |
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228 | (5) |
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Five Contemplations for Cultivating Li |
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233 | |