I am astonished at the benefits I have seen from taking just a few quiet minutes a day for stillness meditation. I am not talking about Buddhism here, but a simple commitment to quieting the mind, while sitting still and focusing on your breath.
What Top Performers and Leaders Say About Meditation
“Meditation more than anything in my life was the biggest ingredient of whatever success I’ve had.” That’s what Ray Dalio, the billionaire founder of Bridgewater Associates — the world’s largest hedge fund firm — explained in 2012.
Oprah Winfrey meditates for 20 minutes a day. Sitting in stillness helps her consistently perform. “Knowing for sure that even in the daily craziness that bombards us from every direction, there is — still — the constancy of stillness. Only from that space can you create your best work and your best life.”
Personally, for me, there has been a self awareness that has increased which has helped me become more confident and aware of what I am doing in the current moment when I am not quieting my mind. Its the after effects of meditation. Like when my husband spilled his Heineken all over our modem in the middle of a Jet’s touchdown, frying out the wiring and shutting down our internet service. I didn’t freak out like I use to. It was like a calmer storm. A category 1, not a 5.
The Benefits of a Calmer Mind
As your meditation practice develops you start to see things in your everyday more clearly. Insights arise to help you make connections and you notice things that you hadn’t noticed before. You listen to others more intently. You have more ideas and additional benefits like. . .
- The ability to act consciously instead of reacting to people and events.
- The ability to redirect your negative thoughts and emphasize positive ones.
- The ability to think more clearly and solve problems more creatively.
Ten Minutes of Meditation a Day
I know you have 10 minutes somewhere in your day. Schedule it now on your calendar. Find a quiet spot for you to take a break, a momentary pause. Find a place to sit still and close your eyes. As you begin quieting your mind, focus on your breathe moving in and out of your body, while synchronizing your body and mind to be together for ten quiet minutes.
Yes thoughts will come. Your mind will move in all different directions. That is okay and very, very normal. You will think about emails you have to write, items you have to pick up from the store on your way home, bills you have to pay and that person you want to tell off at the office.
It’s okay, let them go and go back to your breathe. For ten minutes a day. Make it a practice and you will see an incredible difference in your life over time.
The Real Magic of Meditation
The benefits will include seeing things differently, solving problems that had you stumped, new connections and ideas will come to you, innovative ideas, important ideas. Your creativity will begin to bloom. You will begin to notice how you behave under certain conditions. You may want to change that behavior and you may have never noticed it before you began your daily mind quieting practice. This is called self-awareness and this is the biggest benefit and magic of mindful meditation practice.
Inspiration to Read and Listen to
Unmistakeable Creative A Soulful Exploration of Inner Wisdom with Susan Piver of the Open Heart Project
Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha
Of Undisputed Origin 
Great post. I started meditating this year and have gained plenty of positives. I’ve even started my seven year old with meditation before bed. With him, we only do a couple minute meditation but he really enjoys the process.
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