The Power of Meditation
What’s all the hype around meditation? If you are one of the growing number of people that have a consistent meditation practice, you can probably rattle off a list of benefits you’ve personally experienced. Meditation is nothing new and is believed to have surfaced around 5,000 years ago. The first documentation was noted in the Vedic teachings of ancient India. (1) Meditation quickly spread to surrounding areas, becoming a part of many religious and spiritual disciplines. The enduring nature of meditation practices and concepts is a strong indicator of just how powerful it is.
The word meditation can mean both the practice of a single pointed focus in the here and now, and a state of obtaining total presence or sometimes called “absorption.” The practice of meditation has been & continues to be of great interest to western medicine doctors and scientific scholars because of its astounding effects, such as stress reduction & improved focus. Interest in meditation is increasingly spreading to people who are eager to optimize their well-being and performance. Corporations are investing in meditation teachers because the research has shown meditation can increase employee productivity ,innovation, communication, connection with others, and leadership skills. (2)(5)
There are numerous styles of meditation that have unique benefits, but there are some shared advantages amongst all forms which include: improved focus, reduced stress, and increased creativity. (3) These three categories house a long list of positive outcomes impacting the way we show up in life both personally and professionally.
Improved Focus – In meditation we practice continually bringing the mind back to a focal point. This act trains the mind to turn away from distractions and increases discipline of the mind to the chosen focus. In essence, meditation trains the mind to slow down in a gentle, compassionate, and nonjudgmental way. The ability to focus on a single point within a meditation practice rewires the brain and enhances neurons that strengthens our ability to focus on the task at hand while decreasing mental fluctuations. The result? When we train our mind to focus, we experience increased productivity. Furthermore, with an ‘uncluttered mind,’ we make better decisions.
Reduced Stress - Today a number of corporations are turning to meditation as a tool for increasing resiliency in the high-stress work environments we operate in and to mitigate employee burnout. Research has shown meditation to be highly effective at reducing stress; not surprising given its powerful ability to promote deep rest and relaxation. Various meditation styles move a person from activity into stillness. This can be experienced as mental and/or physical activity being reduced. Due to the interconnectedness of mind& body, when we settle & focus the mind, the body also calms. Through meditation, we can reach a deep level of rest in which the body releases toxic stress and rebalances itself, much like when we get a good night’s sleep. By committing to a daily practice of meditation we actively help to unload stress and alleviate negative physical & mental effects. (4)
Creativity: Many people are living with daily busy-ness, noise, and external stimulation, but when we take time to turn in-ward through meditation, we gain the opportunity to connect with who we truly are. People who meditate regularly tend to have high levels of motivation, authenticity, and inspiration. This perk emerges from spending time with our ‘true essence.’ Within this space we are better able to connect to our creativity, intuition, and unlimited possibilities.
If all of this sounds too good to be true, we get it. Most people try meditation a few times and stop. The first step to starting a successful meditation practice is knowing what it is and desiring the many life-changing benefits. But here’s the deal… you must do the practice to get the results, and the results are not in the meditation, but are in the aspects of your life outside of your meditation practice.
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(1) https://chopra.com/articles/the-history-of-meditation
(2) Hutcherson, C.A., Seppala, E.M., & Gross, J.J. (2008). “I don’t know you but I like you: Loving kindness meditation increases positivity toward others.” Paper presentation at the 6th annual Conference Integrating Mindfulness-Based Interventions into Medicine, Health Care, & Society: Worcester, MA.
(3) Tang, Y. Y., Ma, Y., Wang, J., Fan, Y., Feng, S., Lu, Q., Yu,Q., Sui, D., Rothbart, M. K., Fan, M., & Posner, M. I. (2007). “Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation.” Proceedings o fthe National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 104(43),17152–17156. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0707678104
(4) Manocha R, Black D, Sarris J, Stough C. “A randomized, controlled trial of meditation for work stress, anxiety and depressed mood in full-time workers.” Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2011;2011:960583.doi: 10.1155/2011/960583. Epub 2011 Jun 7. PMID: 21716708; PMCID: PMC3118731.
(5) Allexandre, Didier PhD; Bernstein, Adam M. MD, ScD; Walker, Esteban PhD; Hunter, Jennifer MSW, LISW-S; Roizen, Michael F. MD; Morledge, Thomas J. MD. “A Web-Based Mindfulness Stress Management Program in a Corporate Call Center: A Randomized Clinical Trial to Evaluate the Added Benefit of Onsite Group Support.” Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 58(3):p 254-264, March 2016. | DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000000680
