As vice president of operations, Mark Van Cooney talks about how stress can interrupt sleep, and how mindfulness helped him welcome peaceful sleep. Mark also introduced The Power of Pause to his children to help them not only sleep calmly but also shine in surfing competitions.

Mark breaks down how introducing our Evo culture and mindfulness program to our new leadership teams in hotels helps us learn that "none of us is as good as all of us." His leadership advice to new Evolutionaries is to start each day at a team asking, "what are we grateful for today, and what guiding principle are we going to focus on today."

Mark speaks about managing the team's performance with what the owner of the company is expecting. Dr. Romie talks about these challenges which business owners commonly deal with on a daily basis.

We also dive into the "busy brain" - when highly analytical people either can't fall asleep or wake up in the middle of the night and have trouble going back to sleep because of their long to-do list. Stress responses triggered when we feel that we are out of control can result in a loss of sleep. Hormones caused by this type of stress alter our circadian rhythm, affecting our quality of sleep and, ultimately, our biological clock. Our clock governs our brains and our body. Utilizing the Power of Pause breaks the stress loop in the brain, giving our body relief from stress, stress hormones, and these hormones disturbing our sleep cycle.

Mark discusses with Dr. Romie different aspects of mindfulness practice and who you can reach out to for support. He recently discovered how a daily mindfulness practice can give you benefits every night when you sleep. Mark also discusses who you can reach out to if you are a leader who is experiencing things spiraling out of control at work. He uses his family time on the weekends as his form of rejuvenation from his workweek. Mark also discusses the guiding principles he uses and suggests ideas for how other leaders can use these principles.

Show Notes:

• [01:45] Dr. Romie welcomes Mark to Wellness Evolved.
• [02:23] Mark tells the story of how he started his hospitality journey.
• [04:16] How Mark uses the Power of Pause with his children.
• [05:06] Justin noticed a few things when he got away from the practice of the Power of Pause.
• [06:55] Mark talks about the challenges of managing the team and meeting owner’s expectations.
• [07:27] Mark tells how the Power of Pause came into play for him in his life.
• [10:30] Mark discusses the benefits he experiences when using the Power of Pause.
• [11:29] Mark’s experience bringing the Power of Pause to his team.
• [14:56] Advice for other leaders about what to do when you feel things are moving too frantically.
• [16:00] How does Mark take a pause in his life as a busy, recently promoted Vice President?
• [17:36] Dr. Romie discusses practicing digital detox. 
• [17:54] A few of Mark’s daily guiding principles. 
• [19:29] Where Mark suggests others start with the guiding principles.
• [20:54] Dr. Romie’s suggestions on how to use the guiding principles.

Links and Resources:

• Evolution Hospitality
• Healing Stress Through Nutrition with Jef Morris