As I sit to prepare for some meditation sessions I will be delivering to an organization I am working with, I was inspired by these words I recently read, written by Martin Luther King, a great mind of our time.
"I have many things to do today, I must spend three hours "going within" to prepare myself"
This was a man who understood that preparing his mind was the most important thing and that the more pressing the world and matters seemed, the more he needed this quiet "inward" time to prepare his mind. He understood that preparing his mind was the most productive and powerful thing he could possibly commit himself to.
Now you don't have to spend 3 hours preparing your mind; a few consistent minutes of an inward practice like meditation ~ 5 to 10 minutes each day, is a proactive and powerful way to prepare the mind for the day ahead.
Yet, I have to address a perception we still seem to have that this kind of time spent in quiet and stillness, in meditation, is "unproductive" time. It's something we might or can do when we "have more time". It's something that people do when they have "too much time". It's something that one does only when one is stressed or focused on getting "well". It's not yet, widely perceived as an incredible and vital use of time.
So how is that working for us so far?
When we do not take this "inward" time as Dr King found so vital, our mind is not fully prepared for the day ahead and our minds become too easily "run" by external forces, other people, events and circumstances and so performance, creativity and even our own well being are impacted. How can they not be? Everything is influenced and impacted by the state of our mind.
I hear quite often that people struggle with keeping their thoughts positive or dealing with negative spiralling thoughts that can seem to be running, at times, almost non stop, especially on challenging days. Meditation actively dials down a part of the brain called the "Me Centre" or scientifically known as the DMN, the Default Mode Network. It's the part of the brain responsible for mind wandering, ruminating, worrying about the past or future. So if my "Me Centre" is less active, I'd say that is a pretty significant way I am intentionally preparing my mind for the day.
I guess it's why I've become so passionate about this daily practice in my own life and helping others with it. The only way I truly know that I myself could have navigated the waves in my own life is through this practice which essentially prepares my mind for the day ahead and for what life will bring on that day. The rockier life gets the more I know I need to prepare my mind for the moments and hours ahead.
It's promising that tides around this daily practice are changing as it becomes more mainstream and why you'll hear about so many other minds partaking in it. Hey, maybe headlines like "34 famous celebrities and successful people who meditate" are helping. Whatever it takes to help more people, in these times, better prepare their mind for whatever life brings forth.
When we take this vital inward time we can begin to more fully harness the power and potential of the mind!
I'm inspired that even organizations are beginning to integrate it as tangible performance, creativity and wellness tool helping prepare the mind for:
Focus
Clarity
Creativity
Perspective
Decision making
Managing change and challenges
Handling emotions
Relationships
Wellness
the list is almost endless...
This daily habit begins to put us in the drivers seat when it comes to our own mind. Meditation is a powerful way to quiet the noise and distraction of the outside world and connect to a silence and strength that is within you, within all of us and the noisier and messier the world gets, the more vital a practice this is. You become, over time, the calm, strength and clarity in the storm.
Doesn't it just make so much sense?
See you on the seat...in the quiet centre of the storm...
Angela
Meditation Coach & Creator