Meditation is a technique that can help provide mental clarity and focus by training your mind and developing your concentration. A consistent meditation practice can help you improve in many areas of your life, including being more productive at work. The wonderful news if you’re a beginner is that meditation is a simple way to achieve the benefits, and it requires no equipment or special training.
The benefits of meditation
Meditation comes in many forms, but the two most common are concentrative meditation (you tune out everything around you and focus on a single object) and mindfulness mediation (being in the present moment to make yourself more aware of what is, not what’s passed or to come in the future).
How to start meditating at work
- Get comfy: Sit or lie down on the floor or stay in your desk chair if it’s supportive.
- Close your eyes.
- Breathe deeply in a rhythmic pattern.
- While you’re breathing deeply, turn your focus on each breath.
- As you become more experienced, you’ll find that your mind will be less distracted and able to focus on each breath.
- Start with five minutes of meditation at first and try to build up to 20 minutes daily, increasing by time increments that are workable for you. Of course, if five minutes is what works for you, that’s perfect, too.
As you become proficient in seated meditation, perhaps consider expanding your practice by trying a more advanced form of meditation, which is walking meditation. As you walk, focus on your forward motion, breathing and consistently work to keep your mind clear.
To launch your meditation practice, try a helpful app.
The Mindfulness Coach App is free and will help you practice mindfulness meditation. Features include: education about the benefits of mindfulness, mindfulness exercises to practice on your own or with guidance, strategies to help overcome challenges to mindfulness practice, log of mindfulness exercises to track your progress & reminders to support your mindfulness practice