If you are anything like me then words and phrases like ‘mindful’, ‘self aware’ or ‘enlightened’ probably remind you of scenes from movies like ‘The Love Guru’ or are spoken by someone wearing a long white kaftan with flowers in their hair and beads around their neck. That stereotypical image could not be further from the truth.
As we all deal with the struggles of a world that seems to have less hours in a day every year that goes by it seems harder than ever to ‘live in the moment’. This is because every moment seems to be oversubscribed and we are looking to the next moment to solve the shortcomings of the one that preceded it. All of which are the building blocks for stress and anxiety.
It might surprise you that there are a growing number of successful corporate types that have unwavering belief in the benefits of meditation. I’m not talking about singing kumbaya around the campfire … but rather a simple means of making some time to block out the distractions of the world and most importantly quieten that voice in our head. Time to focus on being aware of the moment you are in rather than the one that has past or the one that has not yet transpired.
There are plenty of self-proclaimed self-help gurus out there and no doubt there are plenty making a pretty penny in helping you achieve enlightenment so the challenge is to find a way to tap into some serenity without feeling shafted or deceived along the way. Maybe a starting point if you are feeling stressed is to try a meditation app and see if it interests you. Or do what I did and read 10% Happier by Dan Harris which is a great introduction to the world of meditation. At the end of the day there is no harm in trying when the outcome could be so beneficial to your long term health.
I am certainly no guru, nor do I profess to have any skill in the art of meditation but I am certainly interested in doing anything that will teach me to focus on and enjoy the present, rather than stress about the past or future.
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