Rest is best
After a busy weekend of exercising ponies (which involved running!) and teaching Reiki, my priority work piece this morning was to meditate.
Years of experience have taught me that I just don't function well when I don't feel together and "with it". So before I open spreadsheets, check emails or make decisions on projects, I get comfortable, close my eyes and find the silence.
Meditation for me, enables me to create a seperateness between my life and my life circumstances. It enables me to see the content of my life, in the context of living; thus reducing the amount of time I am caught up in "stuff" and increasing my opportunity to be a vessel.
A regular morning and evening meditation practice is a given for me. It's not always a strictly formal one, but there's a definite checking in and releasing of what is most on my mind so I can go about my day or sleep in peace. Today however, due to a busy weekend, week ahead and a few novel discoveries, it was apparent something more was required to find my centre.
Too luxurious
Historically, I'd have felt like meditation time was too luxurious and not productive enough to be done in work time. Now however, I realise that meditation is a part of being effective, so absolutely an acceptable work time activity. Even a must.
Thankfully, I am self-employed, so my own boss - and a good few years ago a great Business Coach encouraged me to make Monday mornings admin and set up time. If the most productive thing I can do on a Monday is take care of my physical and mental health, I feel absolutely no issues around doing that.
I also prioritise meditation time when I need help to make decisions and get clear on my exact and current purpose. This reduces the amount of time I spend dithering over what the 'right' thing to do is, and helps me see the big picture saving time and money in the long run.
If I had any advice for a self- employed worker, or company worker in charge of staff, I would encourage them to explore the benefits of learning meditation for themselves and others. Once you've learnt a style of meditation (which I recommend rather than simply listening to a guided visualisation), you can use that practice in your closed-eye meditation time and as you go about your day.
If the word meditation puts you off, you can think of it as 'Quiet Time', 'Rest Time' or 'Focus Time'. Pick whatever works. The goal is to allow the body and mind to rest so we can come back to a resting state of calm and go about our day centred and in charge of our minds, rather than our mind being in charge of us.
If you would like to know more about the benefits of meditation for yourself or others, or would like to learn a simple and easy way to experience calm, reach out! Alternatively, I have a Introduction To Meditation course starting in the New Year or am available to run bespoke courses to groups and companies. Get in touch if I can be of service.