TRY THIS: To help shed some light on alignment, write for seven minutes on this topic: In what ways are my work and life aligned with what is most important to me? In what ways am I not in alignment? What actions might I take to be more aligned?

TRY THIS: Write about your own feelings of belonging and not belonging.

What groups do you belong to?

When do you feel as though you don’t belong?

What undercuts your feelings of belonging?

What supports your feelings of belonging?

TRY THIS: Do a brief audit of the people who depend on you. Acknowledge and write about the ways that others depend on you. At the same time, notice and reflect on how you depend on others. Let yourself sink into and fully embrace the mutual support you’ve given and received. Let yourself feel safe and held by other people in your life, and acknowledge the ways you’ve given this to others. In your journal, reflect on the meaning and richness this has provided. No one is perfect; others have sometimes let you down, and at times you’ve done the same. No matter. For now, fully appreciate your most important relationships, whatever role they play in your life.

TRY THIS: Evaluate the meetings where you work. Whatever your role, how might you incorporate mindfulness and help meetings function better? Ask yourself the following questions.

Is the purpose of each meeting clear? If not, how might you help clarify the purpose?

Are all meetings the same type? How might you vary the types of meetings so each aligns with its purpose?

Do you and your team look forward to meetings? If not, what steps can you take to improve expectations and the experience of meetings?

What are the cultural and behavioral norms in your workplace and in your meetings? What is the level of trust, vulnerability, and joy? What stands in the way of these?

How might you use and integrate mindfulness practices with your meetings to improve any and all of these aspects?

IDENTIFYING ROLES. The first task is to write down your key roles. If you haven’t really given serious thought to the roles in your life, you can write down what immediately comes to mind. You have a role as an individual. You may want to list one or more roles as a family member—a husband or wife, mother or father, son or daughter, a member of the extended family of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. You may want to list a few roles in your work, indicating different areas in which you wish to invest time and energy on a regular basis. You may have roles in church or community affairs.