I hope everyone had a chance this week to look at how negative self-talk affects their lives. This week I want to explore an activity that many feel is an excellent way to reduce stress and counteract its effects. All throughout history people have used meditation as a way to calm themselves and as we are trying to develop the leader within us it would be a great tool to add to our daily regimen.
If you are anything like me when I first heard about using meditation as a leadership improvement activity I had visions of Buddhist Monks sitting cross-legged in a monastery. I couldn’t imagine any practical use for meditation in the business world, but I was totally wrong. Meditation has been used by every religion, and others, since the age of antiquity and means something different to almost all of those groups. I’m not really advocating any specific religious practice in this blog, but merely suggesting that developing your own form of meditation will have many positive effects on your life.
The type of meditation I am advocating can best be described as relaxation, concentration, an altered state of awareness, a suspension of logical thought and the maintenance of a self-observing attitude.[i] The type of meditation I try to practice, as often as possible, is basically finding a quiet place, taking a few deep breaths, and trying to clear my head. It doesn’t involve a certain posture, chanting, or any other practice usually related to religion. It is merely my way of clearing my head.
Some of the benefits of meditating are the positive changes in the body after a session. Meditation has been shown to improve heart rates, blood pressure, respiration, brain function, and metabolism.[ii] Clinics have used meditation to reduce stress and pain.[iii]
Leading From Within exists to help all of us become better leaders by first helping us lead ourselves. With all of the positive benefits listed above why don’t you give it a try this week? If you are having rough days why not find a quiet place and relax for a few minutes?
I would like to end this week with a big thank you for my professors and classmates at the Concordia University Texas MBA program. This program has brought my creative side back to life. I had forgotten my love for learning and my classmates and teachers have made me remember.
I hope everyone has a blessed week!
[i] Perez-De-Albeniz, Alberto; Jeremy Holmes (March 2000). "Meditation: concepts, effects and uses in therapy". International Journal of Psychotherapy 5 (1): 49–59.
[ii] Lazar, S.W.; Bush, G.; Gollub, R. L.; Fricchione, G. L.; Khalsa, G.; Benson, H. Functional brain mapping of the relaxation response and meditation" NeuroReport: Volume 11(7) 15 May 2000 pp. 1581–1585
[iii] Kabat-Zinn, Jon; Lipworth L, Burney R. (1985). "The clinical use of mindfulness meditation for the self-regulation of chronic pain". Journal of Behavioral Medicine 8 (2): 163–190
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