Some of our members go way back. Like Brussels Mindfulness who started running mindfulness courses at The Library Europe as soon as we opened our doors. If you were ever in doubt about what mindfulness could do for you, I think this will convince you.

Beate, I love how our businesses are connected as you started Brussels Mindfulness right as I opened The Library Europe and so our collaboration has lasted for five years now. What is your secret to surviving the first crucial three years as an entrepreneur?

Indeed, we started our journeys together and it has been a great support to me to have partners like The Library. As a start-up it is important to have flexible partners. You have given us this flexibility to add more courses when we had lots of registrations and to allow a cancellation when we had not enough registrations.

For me, it is important to know that I am not alone in this journey and that I have some great colleagues who supported me through the ups and downs of these first years. Also, I am very grateful that we have many faithful clients who believe in what we do and who regularly book our activities.

Brussels Mindfulness runs 8-week courses, away-days, retreats and much more. How do you see that mindfulness makes a difference in people’s lives?

My mindfulness practice is essential for my wellbeing.

My mindfulness practice is essential for my wellbeing. In our busy lives with so many stimuli and distractions, our stress system gets triggered much more often than it was designed to be. Add to that the constant solicitations of our smart phones which keep our body and mind in a constant state of alert and contribute to building up chronic stress and fatigue.

It is possible to find an alternative to the constant stress and struggling. There are deep sources of wellbeing within all of us, no matter how stuck and frantic you might feel right now. Mindfulness helps you to step out of this stressful autopilot mode and to rediscover your inner sources of happiness, peace and strength.

How? By training yourself to live more in the present moment, rather than constantly thinking about the past or the future. By learning to be kinder to yourself, and to take good care of yourself, moment by moment.

Many of our participants tell us that learning mindfulness has been truly transformative to them. It has helped them to step out of unhelpful habits and to flourish in life.

Entrepreneurs are among the people with the highest levels of stress and anxiety in the western world. How can we help ourselves on a daily basis?

What helps me tremendously to stay healthy is my mindfulness practice. I know I have all the tools to help me to find peace and calm even in the business of an entrepreneur’s life. I am very conscious of my stress symptoms and when I notice that it is becoming too much, I freeze my calendar and invest more time in nourishing activities. During busy days I also try to build in enough pauses so that stress cannot build up so easily.

Also, what helps me is to know that my thoughts are not always true. Because after all it is not through physical work that we get exhausted but rather through all the worrying and negative thinking. So if I get stuck in thought patterns that drain me and make me unhappy I question those thoughts. Especially self-critical thoughts can make us very exhausted. I have taken the habit to wish myself well when I feel overwhelmed. In those moments I tell myself something like “may I be peaceful in the midst of this” or “may I be kind to myself”.

You do most of your 8-week course the Sky Room at The Library Europe – what importance does space have, when it comes to understanding and teaching mindfulness?

Space is very important for us as it supports the practice. All our locations are carefully chosen on the criteria of cosiness, warmth and kindness. We have been working with most of our partners since many years and are very grateful about this cooperation which goes far beyond just renting a space. At The Library, our participants love its coziness and stylishness and the welcoming atmosphere. Also, people appreciate that we can offer free delicious teas during our sessions.

 Finally, when are your next courses?

Our next 8-week courses start in the week of 20 January. You can choose between Tuesday night at the Library and or Friday afternoon at MM81. Once of our assets is flexibility for busy people: If you cannot make a session you can come to the session at the other weekday.

https://www.brusselsmindfulness.be/agenda/8-week-mindfulness-course-on-tuesday-evenings-3

https://www.brusselsmindfulness.be/agenda/8-week-mindfulness-course-on-friday-afternoon.

We also have a new course on “positive neuroplasticity” coming up in January for people who already followed a mindfulness course:

https://www.brusselsmindfulness.be/agenda/8-week-positive-neuroplasticity-training-1