BLOG | WHY DO BUSY PROFESSIONALS STRUGGLE WITH MINDFULNESS & MEDITATION?
July 30, 2019 | Andrew Stead
Mindfulness is THE 21st century buzz-word. We’ve heard about it - be present, be aware, here and now! Originally a key part of many spiritual practices, mindfulness and meditation have recently found themselves among the top strategies to enhance work-life balance, retain employees and improve productivity. But how easy are these principals to live by when our professional lives are getting busier and busier?Cultivating a new habit always needs a powerful kickstart, a lot of effort and starting a meditation or mindfulness practice creates plenty of resistance. Excuses create the illusion we cannot meditate for some mystical or sensible reason. These are the tricks our brain finds to delay our self-awareness.
I’ve had a meditation practice for many years and it's one of the best tools I know, yet it's probably one of the hardest practices to get into…I wonder why?
Let’s look at the main reasons that keep the modern professional away from meditation and mindfulness.
1. I’m Too Busy
The most common excuse we tell ourselves is we are too busy to meditate. Nowadays we have much busier lives: our jobs are hectic, our social lives demanding. The consequence – a significant lack of our personal inner space. How often have you thought you could usefully use a 40-hour day? How often do you feel anxious the nighty To Do list and all the extras? We are always on call to be efficient and look perfect. And in the middle of it all we lose track of time and feel unable to uphold the standards we are asked for. And for sure we feel like meditation is something we can do when we have achieved all our other goals and the excuse is always the same “I don’t have time to meditate”. The good news? Science has proven that mindful meditation increases time sensitivity and lengthens perceived time (Droit-Volet et al., 2015). So we only need a few minutes of meditation each day to really feel like we have more time. That alone may be enough to kick start your practice right now! Alternatively, how about making a note of all the time you spend being uncreative and unproductive during the day. Wouldn’t it be better to spend those HOURS doing something extremely positive for your mind and life?
2. Meditation Is For Hippies
Meditation is a very old practice and originally evolved in a more non-secular, spiritual and religious age. Nowadays, especially in the west, we have very different values and the role of meditation, has largely separated from religion. To meditate, you don’t need to follow particular believes, dress in orange, or eat tofu. The only thing you need to do it to be present.
What do Oprah Winfrey – media executive and philanthropist, Bill Ford – Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company and Padmasree Warrior - CTO of Cisco System – have in common? They all practice meditation and mindfulness regularly.
They all speak about meditation in very practical and functional ways. Warriors says: “It’s almost like a reboot for your brain and your soul, it makes me so much calmer when I’m responding to e-mails later.” Ford gave an interview declaring that during difficult times at the company, he set an intention every morning to go through his day with compassion. And to lead with compassion, Ford said he first learned to develop compassion for himself through a loving-kindness – metta - meditation practice.
These global leaders illustrate how meditation can help us in hectic and difficult times at work and in our personal lives, without the need of being spiritual.
3. Meditation Is Too Difficult
I’VE LEFT THE BEST TIL LAST AS THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE!
How often do I hear “I’m just can’t do it! I’m no good at meditation! My mind refuses to stay quiet”? The downside of making mindfulness and meditation more accessible is that many people are left with the romantic belief that meditating means creating an empty and clear mind. For sure you’ll feel disheartened if you consider this the goal. Forget it! True meditation is observation. Certainly, at the beginning. Observation of the body and mind. It’s completely natural to feel agitated and uncomfortable when we start. We’re telling our hyper controlling brain to ‘take a break’ and quite frankly it doesn’t like it! The natural function of our mind is thinking, so don’t get frustrated if you find yourself thinking to any sort of things while you are meditating.
When we begin to observe and notice the activity of our mind and body, for sure one of the fabulous by-products is that the mind calms, our concentration increases, we connect to the parasympathetic nervous system, to name a few!
If you want to learn more about my insight on meditation and how to start a meditation practice, here's a video you might like.
EXTRA TIPS
Want a couple of extra tips for your busy minds? Here they are:
a. Micro Meditation
Sidestep the difficulties of meditation by splitting the burden into small pills of mindfulness! Start to meditate for 1 minute every time you get the chance to, as many times you want per day.
You can check my 1-minute gratitude meditation here and include it in your daily morning routine!
b. Mindfulness in Action When your mindfulness goes Missing In Action, regain self-awareness on the go! Do your dishes mindfully, fold your laundry mindfully, prepare dinner mindfully. These are simple ways to reconnect with yourself and find a peaceful moment even in the busiest days.
Now all your meditation excuses have evaporated, what are you waiting for? Sit and enjoy the flow of bliss! As I said earlier, I believe this to be one of the most powerful practices on the planet!
Have a miraculous, mindful day,
Andrew
