Awake at Work: 35 Practical Buddhist Principles for Discovering Clarity and Balance in the Midst of Work's Chaos

by Michael Carroll

A collection of pithy Buddhist slogans on how to approach everyday workplace stressors as valuable opportunities for growth and learning 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 Work offers 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 Work offers readers a path to rediscovering our natural sense of intelligence, confidence, and delight on the job.

Genres: Buddhism, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Business, Self Help, Religion, Philosophy

217 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 22, 2011

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

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.

Reviews

[Helenalenalenaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some incredibly useful lessons that I'll carry with me through my working life. This book has taught me not only how to better cope with my daily workplace environment, but also how to harness any work situation as a chance to practice mindfulness and learn life lessons. I made my own set of cards with the 35 slogans written on them - they sit on my desk and I cycle through them, providing a different mantra for each week.

At times I feel the book has a bend towards an audience of higher management/executive types (the author being one of them) which did not particularly resonate with me. Overall though I am grateful to have encountered this resource!

[Happyreader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kind of a Start Where You Are with lojong slogans for embodying your work life with a more authentic presence. The slogans serve as concepts to contemplate and work with to transform whatever mind habits you're using to hide, control, escape, etc. "Work is a mess" to remind us that we'll never be able to control or tidy up what happens and expecting otherwise is the source of our frustration and suffering. "Welcome the Tyrant" focuses on how our own fears and insecurities magnify our reactions to those we are most reactive to and curiosity and willingness to face those fears may provide a more skillful means of engaging and defusing their reactive force. "First to Pacify, Last to Destroy" provides a more tempered approach to dealing with conflicts. "Treat Everyone as a Guest" as acknowledgement that most work relationships are not forever and that we should be as open and generous as possible to honor the limited time we share. "Don't Forget" when we're impatient and ready to escape/move on to also be present. "Acknowledge Small Boredoms" as moments when we are actually quite uncomfortably present, hence the boredom and agitation to escape, and welcome them as moments to be fully present to what's going on around us. "Notice and Cut Work's Speed" to see how we use busyness as a means of escape and the tension it creates and how we can come back to the present in a moment by stopping. "Appreciate the Intimacy of Morning Routines" as a way to begin the day with stillness and presence, setting the tone for the rest of the day.

One quote I really like from the slogan "At Times of Risk and Stress, Cultivate Stillness" comes after a discussion of how our habitual response to difficult decisions is frequently either overconfidence/arrogance/rash action or hesitation/fear/inaction and that a more skillful response is to first acknowledge the uncertainity, learn to listen, and shift our attention to the immediacy of our physical environment, opening up an emotional space of not knowing, leading to greater alertness and calm. Yet "Such space can be uncomfortable, since there are no familiar emotional signposts or reliable answers, and our impulse to seek assurances and closure can be quite strong. Our mindfulness practice, however, trains us to pause and rest in the 'stillness of the unfamiliar.' For a moment we have nothing to hold on to - we are just instinctively alert, resourceful, and open to the situation. By stepping past our desire to resolve our emotions and making friends with the stillness, we finally discover the basis for making tough and risky decisions. From this open space, we can acknowledge our anxieties and powerful emotions in a balanced way, letting them play their role of alerting us to possibilities." Something to aspire to.

[Janice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! I'm not sure how I can learn to be truly mindful and always present, but I've become more aware of when I'm not - whether at work, home, or where ever I am. Being present - and truly THERE is key and also removing barriers to productivity, creating positive spaces and energies around you, solid work relationships with peers. There are so many wonderful nuggets of information and thoughts to contemplate. I'll probably purchase a copy of this book and keep it with me at work - I love this short verse suggested to contemplate:

"Without hope and without fear,
May I be decent in my actions,
May I be helpful to others." - page 209

What a great thought to meditate on and recite when you either wake up and get ready to start the day or when you are at work and feeling stressed...

I might even have my future interns reading this!

[Allys Dierker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I dislike self-help because it’s not really ever much help. And this book isn’t going to fix your problems. More importantly, it can help reframe problems as “Just the way things are.” I rage against what I consider stupidity or inefficieny or reinventing the wheel. Carroll’s slogans help me re-evaluate my own interpretation. I’m not in a position to change “the system,” so being angry doesn’t do me any good. But if I can learn to accept, reframe, and still do right by myself, I’ll be in better shape. That’s what this book can help with.

I don’t know anything, really, about Buddhism. I’m a new—and not very consistent—meditator. And I don’t really do “woo.” And still, I think this is a great, simple, realistic approach for coping with a frustrating job environment that you don’t always have the power to mold the way you want.

Carroll offers 35 “slogans” for contemplation. Stuff that may seem like common sense in some cases. But he’s also clear to say that this process of contemplation is hard and often boring. It’s a constant work in progress to accept that “work is messy,” that there are no guarantees, that you have to examine your own fears, that you sometimes just have to sink into discomfort and learn from mistakes and try to remember to be humane, even when you don’t feel like it or someone pisses you off.

No magic bullet, this book, and as a result, it’s useful if you’re struggling but if you’re willing to accept that hokey notion that you can only control yourself, and even then, not so much.

[Vo Khon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trong lần đọc này mình đọc qua 4 nguyên tắc chủ đạo:
Cân bằng hai nỗ lực: Dù công việc có bề bộn cỡ nào thì mình vẫn nên chú tâm vòa hiện tại. không cảm thấy bị áp lực.
Hãy chân thật: mình không cần thêm sự xác nhận từ bên ngoài về bản thân mình. Dù mình là ai, một công việc ít hay nhiều lương, chức vụ cao hay thấp- đó chỉ như chúng ta mang theo hành lí nặng hay nhẹ trên con đường đi du lịch và rèn luyện này thôi.
Trau dồi li: tức là d ù bận rộn cỡ nào, không quên lễ phép, lịch sự như mĩm cười, nói cảm ơn. Những điều đó giúp cuộc sống mình chậm lại.
Công việc luôn bộn bề: Những thứ như kế hoạch, những thứ đã được học và chuẩn bị, không chắc đã đủ để đưa đến thành công. Dựa vào tình huống bất ngờ và thử thách để thành công.
1 nguyên tắc thêm:
Hãy giữ chỗ ngồi của mình: như các vị lãnh chúa Nhật thời xưa, khi lâm trận sẽ luôn ngồi ở vị trí ai cũng có thể thấy và quán sát trận chiến để tiếp thêm sĩ khí dù cho thắng hay thua.  Không bỏ cuộc, không bỏ chạy.

[Emily Griswold Bunty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Applying ancient wisdom to the modern work place, this book is at once insightful and very practical.

This is not a book to be read cover to cover in a handful of sittings; each of the three- to four-page chapters cover a unique angle of living authentically and being fully present each moment at work. The 35 chapters can be read in any order.

It took me forever to read this book as I needed time to digest each concept and inculcate it into my work life. I highly recommend this book.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recommended by a professional career coach I’ve been working with ... this book has provided me with some profound moments of reflection and a foundation for personal work I’ve been doing to be more effective and less stressed at work. I did a lot of journaling on the various lessons set out in each chapter and I’ve learned a lot ... I will need to keep it handy and refer to the various lessons as life presents it’s inevitable challenges.

[Duygu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awake at work offers a fresh perspective after spending some time in an office environment. It brings a good structure to reflect on things happening at the office or any kind of work really. The 35 principles that the book offers are good to write on cards and come back regularly until they become our way of doing things naturally.

[-kevin- · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. For various reasons, I found it mildly pedestrian. It sort of reminded me of other "general" works about being present at work. Perhaps, it would have served me better as a source of contemplation at work, rather than reading it daily during my book time. Unfortunately, I get lost in work and rarely find time to contemplate anything except how to solve the next problem.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're not ready for it, you'll know pretty quickly by your resistance to what you're reading. If you can lean into that defensive ressistance and sit with it, you have a chance of making it through the book and the struggle with work.

[Rodeweeks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth reading over a few times, just reading the book has a calming effect. Full of interesting and relevant ideas on how to put Buddhist principles in practice and be more accepting and calm about the messiness at work.

[Christina Nava · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book and I am keeping it in my collection to go back to and reference. I found very helpful and insightful.

[Mary E Hester · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book I return to over and over, practical and honest

[Gjalt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inhoudelijk een fantastisch boek, ik ben echter nog niet eerder een boek tegengekomen met zoveel taalfouten...

[Trevor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing earth shattering. Unremarkable.

[Painting · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and give it a high rating even though I felt the tone to be bit "preachy," I guess this is expected considering the subject and premise. This author has a fresh, creative application of buddhist mindfulness to contemporary workplace relationships. While Mr. Carroll lacks much of his mentor, Chogyam Trungpa's earthy humor, the writing is clear and easy to understand with simple explanations for the "six confusions" of work, which applies to all aspects of our lives. Advice such as "Avoid idiot compassion" certainly sticks with me because I am often guilty of misplaced compassion. I feel this not a book about achieving any kind of perfection, but certainly a guide to making life less stressful by applying some bravery and skill when dealing with problems. Paying attention to everyday experiences without too much judgement is always a real challenge. There is also some guidance on how to practice focussed attention to any subject as well as sitting meditation technique.

[Eshaneh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael Carroll wove together insights from his practice of Buddhism and wisdom from years of work in the corporate world. His anecdotes were telling, his contemplative slogans were right on the mark, and his writing was engaging. Carroll was a student of the Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and at times Carroll's writing voice seemed to echo Trungpa's, especially with his similar usage of metaphors. One of the contemplative slogans that lingered in my mind was not Buddhist, so Carroll did not limit himself to Buddhist teachings for inspiration. The contemplative slogan was one that Carroll learned from a teacher in high school: "Everyone wants to bounce their ball." I won't give away Carroll's interpretation of this slogan as I hope you'll read the book!

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this as part of the 2015 reading challenge- a nonfiction book. I have read many books on buddhism and a handful of books regarding the integration of buddhist principles at work and this is by far the best work one. The book is divided into 4 overarching concepts and then many essays on individual principles within the concept. I read through the book reading an essay a day and found this was a good pace. The author does an excellent job of using real world examples and typical workplace situations to explain the idea being discussed. The essays were also very practical and provided recommendations that I could use at work immediately. I think this book could be read every year to learn new things and cultivate new levels within the practice.

[Maughn Gregory · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very accessible book of advice for bringing practices of mindfulness, stillness and compassion to the workplace. Most of the ideas here will not be new to anyone familiar with the literature on mindfulness, but the applications are creative. The "workplace" described is a business office, but it's easy to translate the ideas to other work places (like a university!). In fact, this book would make a good introduction to mindfulness practice in general; I intend to have my philosophy of education students read a few chapters.

[Johanna Diaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book to help you view work in a different light and understand that if you are going to work your whole life you might as well enjoy the experience and not dread each day you wake up to go to work.

[Douglas]

Just started today to read this book in the hopes of having harmony and balance in my world at work. I do like some of the ideas and think they could be of benefit.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting up to now

[Ursula · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm LOVING this so far!

[Mary Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are looking for a way to use Buddhist priciples at work, this book is terrific, even if by work you mean at home. :-)

[Sally Kenney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. I want to read it over and over. Applies mainly to corporate settings, but the principles all apply.

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book had some good points, but for the most part did not resonate with me.

[David Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Innovative approach to combining the art of meditation with the stress of work.

[Lori Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read book on spirituality in self development for knowledge workers, managers, executives, and entrepreneurs.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book if it's up your alley.

[Aaron K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good principles. A couple had a real impact on me.