I, like you perhaps, used to be part of the school of thought that I was too busy for meditation. I thought mindfulness, and its cousin meditation, were for folks who were “out there”, practicing some well-meaning but very time consuming, distracting and impractical practice. Boy, was I wrong. Once I was influenced by some successful business people around me, and encouraged to try it by my Podcast host Aaron Wilker, I have found a mindfulness and mindful meditation practice to be a very key tool to my daily accomplishments and to manifesting my goals. I soon realized its popularity and that I was actually finally "getting with the program." Its importance to me has now grown to a point where it is now part of my ideal morning routine.
The more you meditate, the more you will tap into your intuition. Keep reading and I’ll tell you what mindfulness meditation is, describe its benefits, and provide a FREE 7-Day GuidedMindfulness Meditation Audio Series for you to access anytime and anywhere from any device right from this page. With my FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series found below you will have seven 10-minute sessions of a simple to learn and easy to follow format of mindfulness meditation personally guided by me.
Meditation has been proven to help with sleep, weight loss, creativity, improved memory, decision making, your immune system, managing stress and anxiety, feeling more connected, having better relationships, and so much more.
Clear, intentional, focused, peaceful, happy, calm, balanced, centered, aware, forgiving, motivated, goal-driven,
creative, intuitive, wise, healthy, fulfilled, secure, inspired, grateful, trusting, prosperous, decisive, loved, passionate, confident, powerful…
Of all the ancient and modern practices designed to enlighten us, why has the simple practice of Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation come to the fore-front? Why is Mindfulness taking a strong-hold in healthcare, academia and business? Read further and you will find the answers to those, and other questions you may have about Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation.
Mindfulness is living in the moment. Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation began as a Buddhist tradition and is now recognized by psychotherapists as a form of Cognitive Therapy. What makes mindfulness unique from other forms of meditation is that the primary focus of mindfulness is on one’s current physical state. Mindfulness meditation is a seated meditation technique that focuses attention on breathing, bodily sensations and mental relaxation.
Mindfulness increases brain gyrification (folding of brain tissue), which allows the brain to process information more efficiently – providing a better grasp on life’s stressors. According to Medical News Today,, other mental and physical benefits of mindfulness include:
I recently introduced mindfulness practices to my real estate team and use many mindfulness techniques in my coaching and training. Not only have many of my coaching clients heard of it, but some of them practice meditation and other forms of mindfulness everyday. Professional coaches, including NBA Championship coach Phil Jackson and NFL Championship coach Pete Carroll, incorporate mindfulness and meditation in their team practice routines. My early mentor, John Wooden – the winning-est basketball coach in NCAA history, used mindfulness techniques before it was even called that. More and more corporations are offering mindfulness training to their employees and mindfulness techniques are being included in leadership books.
While it’s generally accepted that mindfulness helps decision-makers to reach conclusions, there’s growing evidence the positive influence goes much further, impacting the way decisions are identified, made, implemented and assessed.
Close analysis of the latest mindfulness research by Jochen Reb, Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior at Singapore Management University, for the upcoming book Mindfulness in Organizations, suggests that mindfulness techniques can have a positive effect on all the widely-recognized stages of decision-making.
Meditation is a practice where you train your mind or induce a state of consciousness. You can meditate to realize some benefit, such as relaxation, stress reduction, healing, or strengthening your life force. Or for developing certain qualities such as love, patience, generosity, and forgiveness.
Focusing on breathing, visualizations, mantras or meditation music can help bring mindfulness to the present moment. This sets the stage to calm your mind.
Meditation can also be used to access inner wisdom and insight from your own higher unconscious or from a Universal power often referred to as God, infinite Intelligence, Universal Consciousness, or Source.
It is also a powerful tool for accessing your creativity, your inner wisdom, and developing your intuition.
For most people, this means to closing your eyes, slowing your breath, and focusing on your goals by repeating a phrase without being distracted by anything else.
Most people have a resistance to meditation. They think it’s too weird at first. Or they say they’re too busy to take the time to learn how to meditate.
After reading this, and discovering the simplicity, and many benefits of meditation, my hope is that you will try my personally guided FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series found here and share it with your family and friends.
There are many different forms of meditation that have been developed over thousands of years in many diverse cultures. Some meditations are calming and centering. Some energize and analyze the body. Some develop neutral witness or allow insight and wisdom to emerge. My FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series is a guided meditation format. Below, you will also learn my 3-Step Simple Meditation format.
Learning to meditate is a journey, my FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series will help you get started.
Many of you know my story: my Dad gave me my first personal development book at age 12 and as of this writing I have consumed over 600 motivational, self-improvement, balanced living, and personal development books, seminars, online courses, and audio programs. Even more important for you to know about me is that I have lived and learned from many life lessons on my own success journey and have put the many principles, traits and habits learned to work to benefit my own personal and professional life, for which I am very very grateful.
By age 19, I had founded my first company and have since founded and sold 16 companies and joint ventures and negotiated hundreds of million-dollar+ deals. I now run a thriving coaching and training practice and own a multi-faceted commercial real estate investment and development company. I am on my way back from having lost it all in the wake of the 2008 global financial meltdown…I went from Rock Star to Rock Bottom to Rock Solid. Read more about my perfect storm in this blog post [here]. Needless to say, fast-pace and stress come with the territory.
We all know that entrepreneurs are by definition, managers and risk takers, working in the fast paced business world of financial deals, critical decisions, and competition.
To be successful in this type of environment, and deal with the constant day to day pressures, it is not surprising that many entrepreneurs have turned to meditation.
A growing number of highly successful executives have discovered that practicing meditation helps them keep on top of their busy lifestyles, and allows them to experience some balance and tranquility, away from the frantic atmosphere of their industry.
Benioff previously worked as an executive at Oracle and says that the stress of that job turned him to meditation, and he has continued practicing it for over ten years. Now at the helm of cloud computing company Salesforce, he enjoys the “clear head” that meditation provides.
Steve Jobs loved meditation, he said, “If you just sit and observe, you will see how restless your mind is. If you try to calm it, it only makes it worse, but over time it does calm, and when it does, there’s room to hear more subtle things – that’s when your intuition starts to blossom and you start to see things more clearly and be in the present more. Your mind just slows down, and you see a tremendous expanse in the moment. You see so much more than you could see before.”
In her book Thrive, Arrianna Huffington cites Bill Ford among many others who meditate on a regular basis.
An advocate of transcendental meditation, Dalio, heading up the largest global hedge fund, has made it a large part of the culture of his organization. The billionaire believes that meditation has attributed to every success he has had in life, by giving him peace, health, creativity and centeredness.
Originally inspired by the Beatles, Dalio has stated that his meditating is very practical, and not mysterious, or exotic in any way, and just makes life go better.
Oprah is an outright advocate of transcendental meditation and meditates twice daily. She has also made it part of the philosophy of her business, and has brought teaches of the practice into the organization, for any employees who wish to learn the techniques.
Oprah believes that the “stillness” that is induced through meditation allows her to cope with the daily craziness of her world and lets her generate her best work.
Kobe Bryant in an interview to promote a program made with Oprah Winfrey explains why he meditates every day, he states, “Meditation helps me clear my mind for the day, otherwise I feel like I’m chasing the day.”
This one is obvious, Deepak Chopra has created countless meditation programs, including one with Oprah Winfrey that I use nightly, and even free guided meditations for people to use because he believes meditation is an essential healing tool, as well as tap into their true selves and into the power of Infinite Universe (God). Check out Chopra Center here.
“Meditation takes you beyond the mind’s noisy chatter into the pure awareness that is the source of all your happiness, inspiration, and love.” – Deepak Chopra
In general, through meditation, you can do many things better. You make better decisions. Meditation can help create longevity for a better life, build intuition, and discover your higher purpose.
A few of the mental health benefits of meditation include greater productivity and focus, less stress throughout the day, anxiety relief, and better sleep at night. Meditation helps reset your hormones, promotes faster healing, and getting sick less.
Some of the spiritual benefits of meditation include, greater awareness of the world around you and a deep connection to yourself and your purpose.
All those things sound pretty great, right?
The reality is that you’re focusing on one thing so that everything else begins to drop away. During meditation, your mind quiets. You’re able to access your subconscious mind.
When you first start meditating, you may notice that your mind begins to wander. If you sit with your eyes closed, trying not to think a thought, you’ll probably end up pretty frustrated, because your mind will tend to wander and you’ll think you’re failing. This is ok.
Remember: Meditation takes practice.
It’s much easier when you have a guidance, when there’s meditation music, when someone’s voice is guiding you through the steps. That’s what my personally guided FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series provides you.
Your mind doesn’t wander as much, and it’s much easier to follow along and not get lost in all the stories and the to-do lists and the thinking about the past and worrying about the future that we normally do.
What are the best meditation postures for success? It’s much simpler than you might think. You can meditate while sitting naturally in a chair. You can meditate sitting on the floor. You can even do it lying down. If you lie down you have the tendency to fall asleep, but do whatever is most comfortable for you.
Benjamin Franklin used to meditate holding a hammer about half an inch above his head so that if he fell asleep the hammer would hit his head and wake him up. He didn’t hold it so high that it would hurt him, but he was that committed to meditation.
The thought of learning how to meditate can be intimidating to some beginners as there are several types of meditation, such as Mindfulness, Concentration Transcendental, Kundalini, Qi Gong, Zazen and Vipassana… but new practitioners should not get lost in complicated details. With my FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series found below you will have seven 10-minute sessions of a simple to learn and easy to follow format of mindfulness meditation personally guided by me so you won’t become overwhelmed.
Just focus on improving one session at a time.
Whatever form of meditation you do, remember that you can’t do it wrong. Whatever you are experiencing is fine. Don’t expect to have a totally clear mind or to achieve enlightenment overnight.
Meditation is a daily discipline that you practice for years, but the benefits are so profound.
When you first start, a few minutes is plenty. Over time you will find that you will want to meditate longer. It is a natural progression. My FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series meditations are only 10-minutes long…simple and easy.
If you don’t have 10 minutes, try my 3-Step Simple Meditation to just get started:
Once you find a quiet place to sit where you won’t be disturbed. Sit with a straight back on a cushion or a chair, in a position that feels comfortable…and close your eyes. Rest your hands gently on your knees or cup them in your lap. Keep your upper body straight, tall like a mountain. Relax your chest and let your body rest easily and breathe gently.
First, take a minute or two to listen to the sounds around you. Can you hear birds chirping outside? Cars driving by? Then, move your full attention to your body. Focus on your shoulders, hands and feet. Think of them as weights and let your body feel that weight. Spend another minute or two focusing solely on your body. Mentally scan, head-to-toe. Next, let your mind wander. Spend the next minute or two thinking positive thoughts.
Keeping your eyes closed, shift your attention over to your breath. Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. After a few breaths, begin counting. Every time you inhale and then exhale that counts as one. Count up to 10. If your mind starts wandering and you lose count, simply start over. Once you feel calm and ready to take on the day, slowly open your eyes.
Try meditation for yourself. Take 5-minutes doing my 3-Step Simple Meditation or jump to [my FREE 7-Day Guided Mindfulness Meditation Audio Series now], or simply get into a comfortable position and focus on your breath. You can focus your mind on one of your personal affirmations.
Another way to calm the mind is by visualizing a peaceful scene such as clouds floating by or the waves on a windy lake growing calmer and calmer. Start by doing this for at least 5 minutes every day, then build on the amount of time you spend meditating, and in a few weeks, reassess how you feel mentally and physically.
So there’s three different ways you can start your meditation practice today and begin seeing results immediately. In addition to peace of mind, I guarantee you’ll notice increased clarity and energy in your life when you figure out how to meditate.
Huffington is convinced of the benefits of meditation, not just for the health of individuals, but also in the interests of companies. She goes so far as saying that businesses using meditation practices have a definite competitive advantage. The stress reduction and healthier, happier employees make a more effective and energetic workplace.
In this ten second clip, it’s fairly obvious that Lebron James is no stranger to meditation as he’s seen here meditating on the bench during a basketball game.
In her book Thrive, Arianna Huffington mentions Evan Williams as one of the many successful entrepreneurs who meditate.
Hugh Jackman is a huge fan of mediation. He says that the zen habit has changed his life! Some of his sound-bites about meditation include:
“Nothing has ever opened my eyes like Transcendental Meditation has. It makes me calm and happy, and, well, it gives me some peace and quiet in what’s a pretty chaotic life!”
“The activity of being a husband, a father—those are roles, too, but underneath them is the spiritual center that connects us all, and that’s what’s most important.”
“In meditation, I can let go of everything. I’m not Hugh Jackman. I’m not a dad. I’m not a husband. I’m just dipping into that powerful source that creates everything. I take a little bath in it.”
In this David Lynch Foundation speech she gave Ellen DeGeneres talks about how both Russell Brand and Russell Simmons inspired her to meditate (specifically, Transcendental Meditation). She says its the only time that she’s able to have that “stillness.” In other words, it’s Ellen DeGeneres’ way of staying in the moment, which contributes to her amazing ability to be her authentic self in front of thousands of people.
Katy Perry tells Rolling Stone magazine in this interview that she starts the day with meditation which helps her get into a positive state of mind.
“I start the day with Transcendental Meditation. It puts me in the best mood. I wake up and just prop myself up in bed for 20 minutes. It’s the only time my mind gets absolute rest,”
“It’s something that’s with you for your whole life. You learn your mantra, it never leaves you, and it’s the deepest rest your brain gets. For people that are so creative and have this kind of creative faucet that never turns off – it just continues and continues – it can be a little exhausting. And, you know, with the continual responsibility of having 127 people on the road, and always being the point person for everything, my subconscious is going even when I’m sleeping. I’m dreaming about whatever I’m creating next, or relationships, or blah, blah, blah. So I’m never really off. And meditation is actually the one time I get to really reset.”
When Richard Branson celebrated his 65th birthday on July 18, 2015 a profile of Branson ran on Virgin.com, 65 Things You’ve Always Wanted To Know About Richard Branson and, of course, among them was meditation. And, infamously at this point, we all know that meditation is a key part of Branson’s morning routine.
Read my blog post here which answers why Richard Branson recommends that entrepreneurs practice meditation.
They strongly believe in the advantages that it provides for individuals as well as corporations. A veritable “Who’s Who “of meditation today includes an ever growing number of personalities who are outstanding individuals in their field.
Here are a few more tips to enhance your meditation practice:
After a while of meditating you will begin to discover that you have a great deal of wisdom inside. It is simply a matter of taking the time to listen to what is within, and your intuition, sensitivity, and alignment with the universe all begin to grow.
It is as though all the powers of your mind and the secrets of the universe start to become available to you. You will grow in strength in these gifts so long as you seek them for service to your fellow man rather than for selfish, material ends.
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In this episode of Talk with Tom, I give you 5 reasons to practice mindfulness, how mindfulness improves decision making, and why Richard Branson recommends that entrepreneurs practice mindfulness.
Please let me know if you’ve ever tried meditation and, if so, in what ways it has it benefited you?
Learning how to meditate is a journey, come back to this page time and again to help you maintain your practice.
The process of figuring out how to meditate correctly doesn’t need to be overly complicated. Due to its simple nature, the proven psychological benefits will gradually grow stronger and stronger, improving your emotional and mental health with every session. As a result, you will make room for more success in your life by removing mental clutter that weighs you down.
I am a Success Strategist and Master Coach. I provide transformational coaching and training for individuals and organizations to help you Grow Your Life and Build Your Business by getting clear and focused on what you want, why you want it, and how to create it. Learn more about me at SuccessSeriesLLC.com
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Creating this valuable FREE resource was a team effort, I could not have pulled it off and offered it to you at NO COST without the help of my Success Series team. Thank you Aaron and Karin for your operations and marketing support, and a special thanks to Greg and Ron for your assistance with audio editing and landing page coding. As a Jack Canfield friend and affiliate, I am pleased to have adapted some of the content on this page from Jack. Jack Canfield, America’s #1 Success Coach, is founder of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul® and a leading authority on Peak Performance and Life Success. If you’re ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at: www.FreeSuccessStrategies.com