Mindfulness could be your new superpower!

Our mind is our most valuable asset. What is going on up there can make us feel happy or miserable, successful or broken, energetic or lifeless. For evolutionary reasons, our mind prioritises survival versus anything else, and therefore, just by default, we are biased to wander about negative stuff, think about what could go wrong, and spot future risks. Being aware of this fact and also being aware of the several benefits that meditation practice brings might not be enough. 

Reducing your stress and anxiety, improving your focus, attention and decision making, boosting your mood, making compassion flourish in you, making you less reactive and aggressive, increasing job satisfaction and even serving as treatment for some medical conditions are just some of the studied advantages that mindfulness provides, yet knowing this is not sufficient for us to feel any change. 

I do believe meditation should be a daily habit for all of us, but I also do believe that consistency comes with straightforwardness and simplicity. Nevertheless, and before going all in with the instructions on how to be mindful, one should beware that meditation is a skill to be learned, that meditation practice does not equal to meditation perfection and also that the mind can be a weird place, so take your time.

How can you start meditating today? First let’s do some checks:

• Decide on a time and place that works for you.
• Set a time target. 
• Choose a place where you can sit comfortably but straight.
• Decide whether you want guided or unguided meditation. (I do recommend the Headspace App for guide meditation)

We are all set. Let’s begin!

1. Take a sit and close your eyes.
2. Start breathing normally, do not force it.
3. Be aware of your breath and how it feels. 
4. Catch yourself losing this focus and see those thoughts arising.
5. Gently come back to your breath.

With practice you will strengthen certain regions in the brain that will allow you to come back to consciousness and stop that sense of unsatisfactoriness caused by distraction and wandering. 

The frequency is more important than duration when it comes to the meditation practice. In other words, meditating 10 minutes a day wins over meditating 70 minutes one day a week. This steady approach will build a regular practice which will eventually allow your brain to be present and aware of those arising thoughts throughout the day. Confidence will come as you show curiosity for the process. Enjoy!

IHJ

P.S. I choose to meditate in the morning as I feel it sets up the mood and focus for the entire day.

Grow Sofia P. (2019, October 29), Neuroscientist: Mindfulness ‘is kind of a superpower’ and can help you have ‘a brilliant career’, https://www.theladders.com/career-advice/neuroscientist-mindfulness-is-kind-of-a-superpower-and-can-help-you-have-a-brilliant-career

Birk M. (2020, March 22), Why Leaders Need Meditation Now More Than Ever, https://hbr.org/2020/03/why-leaders-need-meditation-now-more-than-ever