In this guide, I’ll share a wonderful mindfulness meditation for executives, and I’ll explain why meditation training is an executive’s best friend.
As a private and corporate meditation coach, I have seen firsthand how meditation can help CEO’s and other executive-level employees to clear their minds, reduce stress, improve decision making and productivity, and aid them in both their personal and professional lives. I’ll share my experience in this guide.
Below, you can find one of my guided meditation for executives, and after that, my guide to the benefits of meditation and the different types of meditation that you should try.
Let me show you how to get the most out of meditation.
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Guided Meditation For Executives
Please note that I teach many different forms of meditation that will help executives. I have selected the following guided meditation for this article because it is a wonderful holistic meditation that is also simple for beginners.
Script
- Sit comfortably with good posture. Make sure that your spine is straight but relaxed. Slightly lower your chin, noticing how your neck elongates a little when you do this.
- Close your eyes [but, erm, read the rest of the instructions first]
- We want to train the mind to be calm but also focused. To do this, we will focus on one specific thing, that being the breath. More specifically, we focus on the breath as it moves through the space just beneath the middle of the nose. Please do not force your awareness, just gently direct your mind to that space just beneath the middle of your nose.
- If the mind were perfect, we would simply be able to focus without the mind wavering. But of course, no one’s mind is perfect, not even the mind of the most disciplined monk. And indeed, as we try to focus on the breath, the mind will wander, we will get distracted by thoughts, and at moments we might completely forget what we are doing. All of this is fine. What matters is how you react to the movements of the mind. And so, the next few steps explain this in more detail.
- When your mind generally wanders away from your breath, simply say to yourself, “Mind wandering” and then gently return your awareness to your breath.
- When you experience a thought, simply say to yourself, “This is just a thought”. Optionally, you may choose to challenge unwanted and unhelpful thoughts. For instance, if you experience a negative thought such as “I’m failing this project” you can make it a) more positive, and b) more realistic, simply by saying to yourself something like, “There are some challenges with this project, but I will overcome them, as I have before”.
- You can continue to meditate in this fashion for as long as you like, but I recommend meditating for at least ten minutes.
- When you are ready to finish, sit still for one minute and just notice how you are feeling more relaxed and also more focused. Then, gradually open your eyes. As you open your eyes, carry with you your increased calmness and awareness.
Benefits of Meditation for Executives
From my corporate mindfulness training I’ve seen firsthand how meditation can help executives in myriad ways. It’s a valuable tool both in our professional and personal lives, and a highly flexible one.
In a nutshell, meditation enhances the control you have over your own mind, and that can help with everything from reducing burnout to increasing focus to boosting productivity and even helping you to feel more connected to other employees. It can also do wonders for your work-life balance.
For instance, one client I was working with was extremely successful in business but felt like they were missing out in their personal lives. In particular, they wanted to feel more connected to the people around them. So, we worked together on some compassion meditations. These meditations made my client feel a stronger bond with other people, which helped his social life and also helped him to connect better with colleagues.
Naturally, I have also seen how meditation can reduce stress. Many executives have worked with me for stress reduction, and in my (somewhat biased) opinion, meditation is the number one solution for stress.
It’s honestly hard to list all the ways meditation helps because my experience is so eclectic. But I think what sums it up is that it enhances our control of our own minds, which directly enhances our cognitive and emotional control. From there, the possibilities are endless.
Best Types of Meditation for Executives
Let’s discuss some of the best types of meditation for executives. Again, these are just a few of the options. To get the most out of meditation, book a meditation session with me.
Mindful breathing for calmness
If you are new to meditation, you should probably start with mindful breathing. This is simply the practice of observing the breath moving through the body. It’s excellent for stress reduction and also offers many cognitive benefits.
Open Awareness for Creativity
If your job involves some degree of creativity, it’s a good idea to practice Open Awareness. This is a form of meditation in which we don’t focus the mind on one specific thing, but rather “open” the mind to the entirety of the present moment (by being aware of our five senses). Studies show that this improves divergent and convergent thinking, which essentially means that it increases our creativity.
Compassion Meditation
I wasn’t sure which meditation to put third in this list, because there are just so many good options, but I do think that compassion is a vital meditation for executives. It’s important not to get too lost in your job because this can affect your mental health. To compensate for that, try Loving Kindness Meditation. It will make you feel more connected to others. Just hit play! Or book one of our teambuilding meditation sessions.
Practice Mindfulness At Work
There are many different ways in which executives can meditate at work. To help you to get started, I’ve created a tutorial on mindfulness at work. It’s possible to practice this by yourself, but for best results, book one of our corporate wellness programs.
Summary
There are many wonderful benefits of meditation for executives. Meditation can help you to relax, release stress, enhance your feeling of connection to your colleagues, increase productivity, and even heighten your creativity.
There are many different type of meditation executives should try. I’ve shared guided meditations for several of the best meditations, but there is a lot more to discover. For best results, book a meditation coaching session with me today.
Paul Harrison is a passionate meditation teacher who believes in genuine, authentic meditation. He has more than 15 years experience in meditation and mindfulness. He studied meditation in beautiful Oxford, UK, and Hamilton Ontario Canada, and earned his degree at Staffordshire University.
“My goal is to provide the most authentic meditation sessions so you can harness the power of your own mind for personal transformation” – Paul Harrison
