The Wallen Way

Meditation isn’t reserved for Buddhist monks.

Anyone can benefit from this ancient mindfulness practice.

If you suffer from anxiety or depression, meditation could ease the burdens that trouble you.

If you’re a busy parent, meditation could help you stay calm the next time your child throws a tantrum.

If you’re an ambitious professional, meditation could help you concentrate on delivering quality work that will impress your clients.

Whether you want to meditate for religious reasons, stress management, or productivity enhancement is irrelevant. A moment of silence serves you in so many ways it would be silly not to do it. Check out these fascinating benefits of meditation.

Note: this article originally appeared at Pakwired.

1. Meditation calms your mind.

We are surrounded by stressful things.

Bad traffic, angry customers, difficult co-workers, unruly children, and financial troubles can unnerve even the best of us.

Getting upset by every difficulty you face, however, can become exhausting in a hurry. Even worse, your body’s flight-or-fight response is activated every time you get upset, which could lead to a state of chronic stress if you’re not careful.

It’s estimated that stress plays a role in up to 90% of doctor visits, so you should make your mental health a priority. The next time you get stuck in a long line or traffic jam, take the opportunity to clear your thoughts and focus on deep breathing.

2. Meditation boosts your focus.

It’s not easy to concentrate on the task at hand in the age of instant gratification, where people expect immediate responses and constant interruptions are the norm.

This lifestyle isn’t good for being creative or productive. It is easier to work or create art when you get absorbed in whatever you are doing. How focused do you think you’ll be if you can’t concentrate on the task at hand for more than a few minutes at a time?

3. Meditation manages your emotions.

Hurtful feelings can eat away at your energy until you lose so much enthusiasm that you resemble a mindless zombie.

Remember everybody has been through struggles like business failures, job losses, break-ups, and the death of a loved one. These troubles, which seem emotionally devastating at the moment, are nothing you can’t overcome.

I can’t claim I handle every struggle effortlessly, but I can say meditation helps me speed up the healing process. When I feel nasty emotions bubbling up, I find it helpful to: dim the lights, close my eyes, sit in a comfortable position, and pretend I am viewing my thoughts as an innocent bystander (instead of an inflicted victim).

4. Meditation removes your blind-spots.

No one likes to admit their flaws, but you might as well do it, because nobody’s perfect.

You won’t be able to address your faults, weaknesses, or personal demons until you find enough courage to confront your flaws without fear. Meditation provide you with the distance you need to be brutally honest with yourself.

5. Meditation improves your perspective.

Before you complain about receiving a plate of cold food, remember 842,000,000 people (or 33% of the world population) are starving. Before you get upset because your living arrangement isn’t “good enough,” remember 100,000,000 people don’t even have a roof over their heads.

Please forgive me for getting on a soap box for a second. I don’t mean to make light of your struggles, but there are people in this world who have it WAY worse.  Always be thankful. Meditation is an opportunity to express gratitude all of the blessings you have taken for granted.

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