Mind as Code - Mindfulness for Developers and Knowledge Workers

GOTO Amsterdam 2019

How to be more relaxed with the crazyness of the world? How to focus more on what is really important during work and in life? How to be more resilient, when things don't work the way we wanted? And how to react smarter to a situation like that?

Mindfulness is a scientifically researched practice to train the mind. It's like switching to a new, more useful, operating system. Everything becomes a bit more easy. But in this case you are not switching your OS, you are slowly training your mind to become a more useful tool. Basically you become more proficient in hacking your mind: you slowly learn the programming language your mind responds to and thus cultivate a more friendly and fruitful relationship to your mind.

At work a regular mindfulness practice improves concentration, equanimity and impulse control; skills that are useful and very much needed in complex agile environments.

And while mindfulness practices have been around for quite a while, it is fascinating that in the last 30 years there has been a lot of scientific research into mindfulness, separating what works from what doesn't.

In this interactive talk I will share a bit of my own personal story, we will look at how mindfulness works and why it is worth practicing. We also look at some of the science behind it and do a short practice that you can take home with you.

All of that using a lot of analogies to coding and there even will be a cat video.

What will the audience learn from this talk?
You will learn what mindfulness is and in which way it is different from what you might think (It's likely less esoteric and less about relaxation than you think). You will also learn why it's beneficial for you to practice it (for life and work and programming) and take home a foundational exercise to start with.

Does it feature code examples and/or live coding?
No

Prerequisite attendee experience level:
Level 100