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What Is Meditation Good For?
What is meditation?
Meditation is a learned skill of focusing the mind, used around the world and within every culture, for religious purposes as well as to relieve stress, create calm and clarity. Used in both business and privately, it aims to foster peace by creating a balance of heart, mind, body and spirit. When practiced correctly, it creates self-awareness and allows a person to live a more purposeful life in harmony with the world around them.
Health benefits of meditation
There are many health benefits to the practice of meditation that go beyond the relief of stress, depression and anxiety. During any life or health crisis, meditation can provide a clear perspective so one can make decisions consciously and with purpose. Whether it’s cancer, recovering from a heart attack, living with an autoimmune disease, studying for a test, preparing for dental or other surgery, meditation can balance you, and create calm and focus. There are many scientific reasons you should start meditating on a daily basis.
Getting personal with your self
For some individuals, the thought of sitting still seems foreign. Sometimes even our relaxation time is stressful. When we sit and relax at the end of the day, we often spend a good hour reading emails on our computer. When faced with a nice glass of iced herbal tea and good conversation, we opt to plant our face in our phone and type away 10 text messages while sipping and talking. We climb into bed for a restful night’s sleep, then turn on our television and watch the news. A soothing bath turns into a quick cleaning of the tiles and a replay of our busy day running through our head.
According to Mindful, you can take a daily two-minute meditation break, wherever you are, and it will make you fully present. Two minutes! Who doesn’t have that amount of time to spare for themselves?
Making time for focused relaxation, connection to one’s self and the universe allows us to better care for ourselves and those around us. We pay less attention to those annoying emails, become fully present in our relationships, get better sleep, clean our house better, and so on.
Business can be a pleasure
By encouraging your employees and staff to meditate, providing them a designated area and offering time for meditation, you show them that you care for their well-being. This time, when utilized, can enhance their concentration and productivity within the workplace. It can create a more positive outlook, which makes for better customer service skills and interoffice relations.
If given the opportunity to meditate, employers can help keep the workforce healthy, which means fewer sick days and time off and better job performance. By creating an atmosphere that includes mediation, you as the employer encourage your employees to eat better, exercise, maintain healthy friendships and make smarter choices . In this way, meditation comes full circle.
Misconceptions about meditation
Meditation can be confusing and a little intimidating to those who have never tried it. At first, the idea of focusing your entire self on one thought, idea or object can seem unattainable. With our busy schedules, it’s even more important to practice meditation than we might believe. Our modern world can promote stress and increase the likelihood of mental, emotional or physical health issues.
When we spend most of our time in hyper mode, finishing projects, running errands, and trying to balance our professional and private lives, sometimes the answer is right before us. Sit still, take a breath, close your eyes, and mindfully focus.
A learned skill
Most people know what meditation is, but few know how to practice it. In our crazy lives, we have forgotten how to just be. As we meditate and time ticks by, all things cease, for just a few minutes whatever any length of time you choose. The ability to attain and maintain focus can be a challenge, especially when you first begin. This is one reason why some people give up on meditation after a short period of time.
Like any skill you learn – from riding a bike, speaking another language, or cooking a soufflé – meditation takes time and practice. Being patient with yourself and the process will allow you to benefit even in the early stages, when your mind tends to wander. Did I leave the coffee pot on? What time do I have to pick up the kids from soccer? Like a leaf floating in the breeze, acknowledge the thought and let it float away, and return your focus. Have an itch on your nose? Is the neighborhood dog barking in the background? Again, acknowledge it and return to your center.
Risks and side effects of meditation
No known side effects or risks are associated with practicing meditation, except maybe peace of mind, mental clarity, and living a more purposeful life. Missing the occasional appointment or errand can happen – but that happens anyway, so why worry about it?
Meditation is medicine!
Meditation offers many health benefits to us all. No matter your social standing, occupation, family status, age, gender or lifestyle, you can benefit from its practice. Simply make the time, practice the art and be patient with yourself and the process. The rewards will last a lifetime.
