Jo Anne Bishop, PhD, MPA is considered one of the world’s leading experts on the use of Mindfulness in business, corporate and personal life. She has over twenty years of experience motivating people and groups to realize their human potential. She is also a highly successful author and motivational speaker. It is her passion to teach others effective steps to increase this powerful energy in their every day lives. Jo Anne believes that the use of mindfulness and coaching, along with the newest brain research can help individuals understand the power that we hold within our minds, bodies and spirits. She is one of thirty five experts in meditation, spirituality and creativity who were consulted for a forthcoming movie, The Mindfulness Movie.

Research, including from Mass General and the University of Pennsylvania, demonstrates how mindfulness changes the brain in positive ways in 8 weeks or less, with just 15 minutes/day. All mindfulness practices begin with breathing, sometimes with a mantra, other times with similar objects to focus on, like a candle.

Joanne defines intuition as ” the ability to gain information outside the rational mind.” She shares her personal background of being born into an immigrant Celtic family that valued intuition so she was encouraged to respect hers. She was motivated to became highly educated to balance her second sight, yet also be grounded and use her intuition as a positive tool.

Joanne then explains the connection between meditation and intuition. For example, meditative breathing allows us to become more open and compassionate, and more in touch with our own inner wisdom and understanding. With exercise, you can develop intuition further, so she describes one of the exercises she uses in her workshops.

The primary connection between mindfulness and intuition is through self-care. Even just five minutes a day of telling the Universe what you need is helpful.

Intuition and instinct are not the same thing. Instinct comes from our right brain and is what keeps us safe on the planet, including via the fight or flight mechanism. Instinct can be overcome by fear. It kicks in to save lives but the fear can overcome it when we freeze and do nothing.Intuition is not a feeling but a knowing.

Joanne shares some basic skills for developing intuition, including committing to a minimum of 5 minutes a day doing deep breathing, reflection, meditation and/or prayer.

For more information, please visit www.drjoannebishop.com.