Need some headspace?
Meditation is something that as I get older I hear more and more about. The reality is I probably haven't really 'heard' about it more, I've just become a lot more receptive to it. It's something that I become increasingly aware that I should do and would likely benefit from. Sure, meditation in some circles has become the hip and cool thing to do and its benefits have in recent years become more mainstream through it's amplification across digital channels, but let's not forget that in no way is it a new thing. Some of the earliest references of meditation date back to the 6th to 5th centuries BCE.
If the pure monetary size of the self help industry is anything to go by (apparently worth $11 billion in 2013), which includes books, seminars, life-coaches and endless guides to 'a happier life', it would be fair to conclude that a lot of people feel unsatisfied, overwhelmed and in need of clarity and a helping hand with their lives. From the compounding and often damaging pressures of a hectic work and social life, it's easy to feel that we are 'always on'. We lack the mental downtime we so badly need and get caught up with being focused on focusing on everything; at once.
Think about it....when was the last time you deliberately sat on the floor still, closed your eyes and focused on a single minded thing as simple as the air moving through your nostrils for 5 minutes, whilst blanking every other thought from your mind. Could you even do this without getting bored or distracted? Most of us (including me) find this extremely difficult.
From ultra successful business leaders such as Steve Jobs, to sport stars like Lionel Messi who are at the absolute top of their game, to the average working Joe who against all odds seems to be successfully balancing work and life commitments. These people understand that taking some regular time out or 'headspace' is hugely beneficial to their quality of life and success within it.
For many of us training ourselves physically is quite easy and normal, and increasing knowledge aka learning is also pretty normal in work and life, but training our minds to consciously focus on something whilst blocking everything else out is something that is pretty new and alien to many of us.
Well, this is where meditation comes in. This post is a brief look at what meditation is, what leading authorities say it's benefits are, a few simple exercises to start you off, and a few tools that I have recently found. It is written from my perspective of a beginner.
