Mindfulness for the Overloaded Brain: Why We All Need It

Genie Love • March 18, 2025

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I think every organization should offer some form of mindfulness instruction and practice. We all need it. There is just way too much noise and stress in our lives—worries about our kids, our aging parents, the economy and job market, national and international politics... There’s also an overwhelming amount of information about what we should be doing for our mental and physical health, and no time to do it all. On top of that, we stress about our personal screen time (and that of those we care about). It’s endless.


And if you’re neurodivergent, racing and spiraling thoughts often compound due to the way your brain works. They’re louder. And you may worry about being found out at work or struggling to mask your challenges. It’s like turning the volume on these stressors way up. (Check out my latest Neurodiversity Insights in 20 to learn more about sensory overwhelm.)


Key Components of Mindfulness (according to Perplexity):

  • Awareness: Being fully present and attentive to one's experiences.
  • Nonjudgmental Observation: Observing thoughts and feelings without evaluating them.
  • Acceptance: Embracing experiences without resistance or attachment.
  • Present-Moment Focus: Concentrating on the current moment rather than dwelling on the past or worrying about the future.


According to me:

  • Quieting your brain, thoughts, and emotions.
  • Getting out of fight, flight, or freeze mode so you can decide the next best steps to take.


I’m not talking about 20-30 minute meditation sessions every day that feel overwhelming... another thing to fit into your busy life. I’m talking about 1-2 minute mini-sessions throughout your day that bring you back to the present, over and over, until you learn to recognize when your thoughts are spiraling and have strategies to quiet them. So you can choose where you want your attention to go. So you can tell those thoughts: Not now.


It’s not easy. It takes effort. But at this point, the research is pretty clear—mindfulness has significant benefits. And I believe it should be available to everyone.


Even as I have been writing this, I got some bad news. And it’s spiraling around in my head, threatening to derail my day. And I have things to do. So now, I get to practice... all day. Every time I feel disappointment start to spiral, I’ll take note of it, feel it, remind myself that it’s okay to feel disappointed, not push it away, and then take the next step forward—over and over and over.


Who doesn’t need help with this?

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By Genie Love • June 25, 2025
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Why Deep Work Feels Hard—And How to Support Your Team

By Genie Love • June 2, 2025
IWe live in a culture that embraces busyness. We want our people to look like they’re working. As long as we’re answering emails, attending meetings, taking thorough notes, and keeping up with messages, we feel productive. But what happens when the appearance of busyness gets in the way of the deep work that needs to be done? For most of us, shifting into deep work can feel like an uphill battle. According to Andrew Huberman, this resistance is something most of us experience and we need to work through. But for employees with executive function challenges, this resistance can be significantly more intense. The initial inertia to get started can feel like a mountain of effort. This is real. And it really is due to the way their brain works. Externally, this might look like: Procrastination Laziness A lack of motivation or work ethic Someone keeping up with emails and meetings but not making progress on deep work How Managers Can Help Fortunately, there are strategies to support employees who experience this kind of resistance to deep work. Here are a few: Provide a quiet, reliable space to work. Having a consistent, distraction-free environment makes it significantly easier to transition into focus mode. Help them develop an “opening” routine. This is a deliberate, mindful process of setting up the workspace and minimizing distractions. Encourage them to say “I’m ready to start this task.” (I actually will say this out loud.) This can help signal to the brain that it’s time to focus. Support structured transitions between tasks. When moving from one task to another, reverse the opening routine. "Close" the previous task before "opening" the next. A short movement break between tasks can also help reset focus. Be explicit about which meetings are required. Employees with executive function challenges may default to attending every meeting because it’s not always clear which are essential. Too many meetings can create unnecessary workflow disruptions for someone who already struggles with this. If you’re interested in better understanding executive functions and how they impact your employees, check out this week’s Neurodiversity Insights in 20 recording. I also dive into how sensory overwhelm affects productivity and what you can do to help.
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