2. Take a moment for mindfulness
The world can be a noisy place. We can be blindly
frantic; too busy to actually notice where we are
or what we are doing. Taking a moment to release
everything else that is going on in our minds to
relocate the present is hugely beneficial.
Create a moment of stillness by imagining the heavy
mental squabble as a cloud behind one’s head. Now
allow it to float away.
Allow each breath to flow into your lower torso and
out to your limbs as though it is washing out any last
vestiges of tension.
Now take a tangible object. It could be a paperclip,
a blueberry, a tea cup... ANYTHING. Hold it and
really see it. Feel the weight of it, the texture, notice
how the light interacts with it. Match its stillness and
presence. Appreciate the simplicity of Now.

3. All living systems require circulation. There is
exchange of nutrients between symbiotic organisms in
Nature. We breathe and distribute oxygen throughout
our bodies to keep our cells alive. The mind too must
circulate.
One of the most effective techniques to overcome
mental blocks and stagnancies is to m-o-v-e>>>
Once we become more fluid we begin to occupy
the wavelength of play and imagination. The higher
faculties of human problem solving, intuition and
creativity become available to us.
Start with ANY movement; twiddle your fingers, roll
your hips, kick a ball along the floor, throw something
at the rubbish bin... or if you dare to - DANCE!
Move

4. Observe your routine objectively for a moment.
Locate the regular rhythms. What elements of your
life exist on a circuit loop? What repeats when left
on automatic? Do you always eat the same thing for
breakfast? Park in the same spot? Run up against
the same problems due to a behaviour pattern?
Once you’ve found the habitual actions, throw them
on their head, not necessarily because they are ‘bad’,
but because we are wanting to keep things fresh.
What would happen if you had the weekly meeting
in a different room? If you didn’t eat for the day? If
you changed the language you used?
Simply by changing things up we are forcing
ourselves to re-engage, re-assess, form new neural
pathways and may collide with new particles which
do not circulate in the channels we usually run along.
Interrupt patterns

5. A great way to maintain interest and bring relief from
the routine is to knowingly adjust dynamics while
working; vary the speed - intentionally working really
slowly for five minutes and then working twice as fast
for the following 5 minutes. If you’ve been sitting for an
hour, try standing at your desk. If you’ve been inside,
go outside. Have everyone work loudly, talk, express
their feelings, clatter and bang as they work, then
everyone tries to be peaceful and still as they continue
work for the next phase. This is like generating a
wave that rises and falls and then riding it.
This can also be applied through shifts in focus; one
may focus soley on the task at hand, but then focus
on how doing it relates to the mid-term goals and
then keep doing it, but now with a focus on having
it serve your long-term ambitions. Does this change
they way you do it or what you get out of it?
Orchestrate dynamic shifts

6. Find similarities and differences
As a cognitive challenge find similarities in what you
do with completely disrelated fields. How does your
office space relate to an animal? Perhaps the rooms
are linked like cow stomachs? Perhaps the action
you take operating tools or machinery, mimics an
escalator or the spiral of a dandelion seed mid-flight?
Then find differences in things which seem the same.
What unique elements does this client have compared
to the last? How have your actions this week differed
to last week and what were the results in statistics?
What are the similarities between what you do and
what a tribesman does as he searches for water? Is
there a correlation between your workplace and the
life of bacteria or fungus?
This activity can bring about some great realisations
through a shift in perspective.

7. Do something unexpected
Surprise your colleagues, (and yourself), by doing
something creative, generous or helpful when it is
not expected nor asked for. Perhaps something as
simple as a compliment, something as creative as
drawing a portrait as a gift or something as selfless
as arriving an hour early and handling someone
else’s backlog.
Be moved by whim, by spontaneous impetus to
breathe life into the workplace.

8. Roll the dice
Enter a random element to your day, play with chance
and fate. Decide by the flip of a coin. Force yourself to
say “yes” to everything for a few hours without being
able to guide and decide, pick a task blind-folded...
Human’s are endlessly resourceful and inventive, we
can negotiate almost anything we are faced with and
quickly plot a path to get ourselves back on course
if we stray. Sometimes adding an element of chaos
can trigger some great new methods of interaction!

9. Tune in to y r inspiration
How well do you know yourself? What brings about
a good response in you mentally and physically?
What sparks your imagination? What transports you
to a completely difference sphere?
It may take some research, reflection and experiment,
but learning what truly inspires one is like finding gold.
Once it has been found, make a conscious effort to
bring yourself into contact with it on a regular basis.
It may be bringing your favourite music to listen to
when you need a change of pace. It may be reading
the words of a motivating author. It may be watching
a home video of your kids dancing or lighting incense,
closing your eyes and chiming a gong.
Sometimes these activities won’t fall naturally into your
work day, but taking the time to tune in to that space
of inspiration will benefit everything else that follows.

10. Invent rituals of meaning
When the majority of our actions are forced, expected
or unthinking, much of our activity can become hollow
and meaningless. Phases of production can blend
from one to the next and we go a bit numb.
To combat this you can mark completed cycles with
a little celebration; when you finish one task you
may make a point of closing all the books on the
table, lowering the laptop lid, breaking off one block
of chocolate and nodding three times. Before you
leave the office you may fully end the work phase
by wiping down the surfaces and folding a small
origami object to sit on your desk, which will greet
you the following day.
These small gestures will bring mindfulness to the
shifts in each phase of your production cycle and
allow you to reflect on what you have just done and
be present for the next activity, with full awareness
of why you are doing it.

11. Get it wrong
The ‘right’ path has been tested and laid out in rules
so that we can achieve the expected results. This
can often be very workable, but is not necessarily
innovative and evolutionary for our careers nor the
business.
Sometimes, when we consider it time to inject some
play into the workplace, we can purposely do things
the wrong way. This can provide a source of relief
as it directly counters the stress which can build up
around the fear of ‘getting it wrong’.
The other benefit is we may uncover new techniques
and combinations of cause / effect reactions, which
were kept out of view by the safe systems we usually
stick to.
So allow yourself to completely let go from time to
time and make a right muck of it.

12. Thank you for playing with Bravo Child at
The Sandpit. We hope this booklet provides
a reminder which enables the momentum to
continue into the workplace and throughout
your production cycles.