Makers Mindful Coder Series: Week 3— Navigating Stress
A 9 part series of Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence topics from our Daily Meditation sessions at Makers. Take a sneak peak into what our learners experience
Welcome back to Part 3 of the Makers Mindful Coder Series, where this week, we delve into the crucial aspect of managing stressful thoughts and emotions. The learning journey is not just about mastering syntax or algorithms; it’s equally about navigating the internal landscapes of our minds.
In this instalment, we explore the mindfulness practices of interoception and affect labeling, two powerful tools in our emotional toolkit that have helped our learners manage stress in their learning and career-change journeys. Here’s some of what we covered:
Interoception and Affect Labeling
Interoception refers to our ability to perceive physical sensations within our body. This could be anything from feeling your heartbeat accelerate when you’re nervous to noticing your palms sweat before a presentation. Affect labeling, on the other hand, involves putting those feelings into words. Instead of simply feeling anxious, you acknowledge, “I feel anxious because I’m presenting my code for the first time.”
Research supports the effectiveness of these practices. One study discovered that naming our emotions can calm the part of the brain that deals with fear, helping us react less intensely to stress. Another study found that mindfulness techniques, which include being aware of our internal physical sensations, can enhance our ability to manage emotions by altering the brain’s response to stress.
Addressing Common Stressors
Learners at Makers face a spectrum of common stressors (see below). These fears are a natural part of the learning process, but left unchecked, they can hinder progress.
Self-Doubt
It’s the voice that whispers ‘you’re not good enough’. Through mindfulness, learners are taught to recognise this voice as just one of many thoughts, not an absolute truth.
The ‘Pain’ of Growth
Learning is inherently uncomfortable. Recognising the discomfort of growth as a sign of progress, not failure, it is a shift we cultivate through meditation and mindfulness practices.
Comparing to Peers
It’s easy to look at others’ achievements and feel inadequate. Mindfulness helps learners reframe these comparisons, seeing them as an opportunity for inspiration rather than a measure of self-worth.
Worries About the Future
Concerns about what’s to come can hinder. Through practices like interoception, learners are brought back to the present, where they have control and can take actionable steps.
“In the garden of the mind, self-doubt is a weed that withers in the light of our own achievements and strengths. Remember, even the mightiest oak was once a seed that held its ground.”
The Makers Approach
At Makers, we provide our learners with self-regulation tools through our daily guided meditation sessions, Emotional Intelligence (EI) workshops and one to one EI and Wellbeing coaching.
The impact of this is learners transform their approach to stress. They’re not only better coders but also more resilient individuals, equipped to face tech industry with confidence.
This week’s reflection questions:
- How will I confront and overcome moments of self-doubt, and what strengths will I reaffirm about myself?
- What challenges might I face this week, and how will embracing them help me grow and develop?
- How can I handle moments of comparison, and how can I turn these moments into opportunities for self-appreciation and growth?
- How might I manage my worries about the future, and what steps can I take to stay grounded and focused on the present?
As we move forward, Makers Devs are learning more than just coding; they’re upskilling self-awareness and stress-management, allowing for a more empowering and joyful time on the programme and beyond!
See you next week for Part 4 — “Building Grit”
The Makers Joy Team
