New Study Reveals That Stress Causes People's Minds to Wander Close to 60% of the Workday

Sleep, purpose and a daily mind training practice are significant contributors to focus and productivity.

NEW YORK, April 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- People report that their minds wander at work 37% of the time, and stress increases mind-wandering by 2-3 times, according to The Mind at Work study by Potential Project, a global research, leadership development and consulting firm. By Friday, people who feel stressed report that their minds wander for nearly 60% of the workday.

The Mind at Work study polled people in 44 countries across 15 industries to assemble 225,000 data observations on employee focus, resilience and engagement. It found that unfocused employees and absent-minded leaders cost the U.S. economy alone nearly $30 billion annually.

According to Rasmus Hougaard, CEO of Potential Project, "It is vital, particularly now as organizations plan for a return to work, for us to deepen our understanding of what drives renewed engagement and sustained performance at work. Employees and leaders want to feel and perform better at work as we climb out of the pandemic."

The study sheds light on what helps us to be our best selves at work. Employees whose work is purpose-driven are 30% less stressed and 50% more focused on their day-to-day tasks, and employees who get a good night's sleep come to work with 15% more focus, 20% less stress and feel 25% more in control. Most strikingly, employees with a mind training practice feel more grounded, resilient and present, and their wind-wandering is 50% lower than less mindful colleagues.

The Mind at Work is revolutionary in its approach to assessing what our minds do while we work. The data is captured via Mindgrow, Potential Project's proprietary digital diagnostic tool. Rather than relying on traditional survey mechanisms, Mindgrow gathers respondents' feedback real-time within the flow of a workday. Then, a team of behavioral and data scientists distill the data into actionable advice for business-friendly application. The collaborative partnership behind The Mind at Work includes leading academic researchers:

• Sandra Matz, PhD, Associate Professor of Business at Columbia Business School
• Ashley Whillans, PhD, Assistant Professor at Harvard Business School
• Jennifer Chatman, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Management at Berkeley Haas School of Business
• Juliana Schroeder, PhD, Assistant Professor of Management at Berkeley Haas School of Business
• Joanna Sosnowska, Assistant Professor at University of Amsterdam Business School.

To download the first edition of The Mind at Work, visit www.potentialproject.com/research.

Potential Project is a global research, leadership development and consulting firm that partners with organizations to uncover the power of the mind - how it is wired and how to rewire it for new behaviors and different outcomes. Potential Project is present in 28 countries with a network of 200 consultants and facilitators, and serves hundreds of forward-thinking companies like McKinsey, IKEA, Unilever, Cisco, LEGO and Microsoft.  

Contact: Paula Kelley, Global Marketing Director: paula.kelley@potentialproject.com

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