If I told you that there was a habit that Oprah Winfrey, Steve Jobs, Angelina Jolie, Kobe Bryant, and Paul McCartney had that took just a few minutes out of their days and that you could easily pick up, what would you think?
They are among a list of many highly successful people that advocate and practice meditation. Whether you have been thinking about starting or not, there are numerous benefits that make it a valuable practice for just about anyone.
Here are 7 reasons why you should start today and begin improving your life:
1. It helps you find moments of peace.
Paul McCartney said, “In moments of madness, meditation has helped me find moments of serenity.”
Despite how much is taking place in the outside world, or even just in your head, meditation can help you get to a peaceful place. Taking a few minutes in the middle of crazy situations to relax can be a refreshing reset.
These moments of calm are useful in not only keeping your stress levels in check, but they are also valuable in their own right. It is an invigorating feeling to be calm and relaxed. You see the world more clearly and have an internal feeling of peace.
2. Meditation will lead you to a more still mind.
People who practice meditation have learned to quite their mind. Steve Jobs once 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.”
This quite mind will lead to more creativity and a closer connection to your intuition. It will also help you enjoy each moment more fully. With a quiet mind, you are able to immerse yourself completely in the task at hand as opposed to thinking of all else that might be floating around in your mind.
3. It will recharge your energy levels.
Kobe Bryant meditates first thing in the morning each day to get off to a good start. He is kickstarting his days with an energy-filling activity.
The process of focusing on your breathing and being in complete, relaxed, control does wonders for your energy. When you are feeling low in the afternoon, you can use a quick meditation session to bring your energy levels back up. The process will naturally do so and keep you clear minded and productive all day long.
4. You will better understand yourself.
In order to quiet your mind, you will first see where it normally goes off running towards. What are the things that occupy the otherwise blank space?
Those will teach you a great deal about yourself. Are you constantly comparing yourself to others? Are you always anxious? Hungry? What other fears, desires, and negative thoughts occupy your mental space?
When you begin to see these thoughts, you will understand the way your mind works better. You can trace where they are coming from and work towards eliminating the negative ones. This will not only quiet your mind but make you much happier.
5. You will be in greater control of your emotions.
Through meditation, you will learn better control of your state of mind. One of the most useful places that comes in handy is with your emotions.
You will begin to see anger or jealousy sizzle in your mind and you will have the tools to push it out in a healthy way. This ability will keep you more level-headed and rationale throughout your days. This is valuable at work, with your family, and in many other contexts.
6. You will be able to handle greater levels of stress and responsibility.
In hand with being able to quiet your mind and recharge your energy, meditation will enable you to take on more. There will be fewer thoughts lost to negativity; thus, you can delegate that energy to more responsibilities.
This will enable you to be more productive and accomplished each day. Outside of the external benefits of that, higher levels of productivity also tend to give us greater internal satisfaction.
7. It is easy to get started.
Best of all, it is simple to start meditating since all that you need is 5 minutes each day. There are a wide variety of phone apps and YouTube videos that can walk you through helpful exercises.
You can also meditate wherever you would like. You do not need to find the perfect studio or area to do so. Instead, you just need your own space where you can be in your head, focus on your breathing, and relax.
Given this ease, practicing meditation daily is significantly easier than most people think.
The benefits are worthwhile.
The list of successful people that practice meditation above is just the tip of the iceberg. It goes on and on due to the positive impact that meditation has on people’s lives.
Even committing to meditate for 5 minutes each day for one week is a great way to start. At first, it will, no doubt, be challenging to quite your mind. Over time, though, you will begin to improve and see the benefits. Almost certainly, you will want to continue far beyond just week one.
