eight
THE SEVENTH LIMB: MEDITATION (DHYANA)
If we know the divine art of concentration,
if we know the divine art of meditation,
if we know the divine art of contemplation,
easily and consciously we can unite the inner world
and the outer world.
Sri Chinmoy
Before meeting with potential donors, Steve spends a few minutes in meditation, concluding with an intention that helps him connect to purpose:
May [this person] be happy and peaceful
May she be free from all inner and outer harm
May her mind and body be healthy
May she be happy with things as they are
May she live with the ease of well-being
Steve, the physician/fundraiser at a major west coast university medical center, is charged with raising money to support the goals of the institution—at least on paper. But he likes to turn that description on its head. He considers himself an advocate for donors and in service to connecting the donors’ passions and motivations to the needs of the institution.
One of the things meditation practice does for him is remind him that the focus of his work is not the transaction, but building relationships. “When I am able to quiet myself and turn my focus toward understanding and advocating for the donor, I know I am not going to take actions that are coercive or manipulative. The meditation has been a way to bring the potential donor to the front of my mind. I can think about their needs instead of ‘How do I get them to do something I want them to do?’ Using manipulative selling techniques may get you something in the moment, but it won’t get you a lasting relationship.”
Relationships are key in his line of work, and Steve says that being intentional about donor advocacy has brought long-term gains he is convinced he wouldn’t have otherwise seen. “Through service to others, we really do get what we need,” Steve says. “After six years, I am beginning to see how fruitful those trusted relationships can be. People know my intention, and they trust me. In the last three months, two donors have called me and said, ‘I think I could do something better.’ That is fantastic, and so satisfying.”
One of the purposes of meditation is to remove attention from your body, the environment, and the passage of time, says Joe Dispenza, author of Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself. “What you intend, what you think, becomes your focus instead of these externals. The practice also is a means for you to move beyond your linear, analytical mind so that you can access the subconscious, where your habits reside.”
Eknath Easwaran calls meditation a “skill for living,” with benefits that can be drawn upon at any time, in any place. The benefits of meditation (dhyana) are backed up by empirical data. Of the eight limbs, meditation has been the most scrutinized by researchers. Technological advances have even been able to show its effects on the brain. Findings from some of these research studies include:
~ Herbert Benson, a researcher at Harvard, discovered that meditation could slow the respiratory rate and oxygen consumption, lower heart rates, and reduce elevated blood pressure. Several studies have since built on his work.
~ Researchers using imaging technology have found that people develop measurable changes in the brain associated with compassion, self-awareness, and memory after learning “mindfulness meditation,” which involves periods of intense focus and concentration.
~ The research of Dr. Sat Bir Khalsa, a Harvard scientist who works with the Kripalu Institute for Extraordinary Living on yoga-related research, showed in 2009 that yoga and meditation lessens anger, depression, and performance anxiety in young musicians.
~ Even short-term meditation improves self-control, mood, stress response, and immunity response, suggests the research done in 2007 by Dr. Michael Posner, University of Oregon, and Dr. Yi-Yuan Tang, Texas Tech University.
~ Actual alterations in brain structure underlie the cognitive and psychological benefits reported by people who meditate, according to a study led by Harvard-affiliated researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital. Sara Lazar, senior author of the study, says research shows that meditation’s benefits come from more than just spending time relaxing.
Easwaran warns that is important to distinguish true meditation from other like-minded pursuits, such as taking it easy or napping. In Conquest of Mind, he writes that meditation-like techniques “may be inspiring, they may be good for your physical health, but as far as accomplishing enduring beneficial changes in the mind, they have no more effect than writing on water.”
MEDITATION’S WORKPLACE BENEFITS
Major corporations such as Apple, HBO, General Mills, Nike, Prentice Hall Publishing, and Proctor & Gamble are so sold on the benefits of dhyana that they have found ways to bring meditation into the workplace. These employers have instituted practices such as encouraging workers to take time for the practice, creating meditation spaces, and providing training. Google offers its employees a seven-week training course in mindfulness meditation. It’s taught by engineer Chade-Meng Tan, whose official title is Jolly Good Fellow. He’s written a book, Search Inside Yourself: The Unexpected Path to Achieving Success, Happiness (and World Peace), and created an open-source training program for other companies.
The Jolly Good Fellow says meditation builds emotional intelligence, which helps people be more effective at work—and that provides a bonus to the bottom line.
Oprah Winfrey, who did a story on Transcendental Meditation that aired in 2012, was inspired to incorporate the practice into her work day. TM, as it is known, typically involves two 20-minute sessions daily of meditating with a mantra. Winfrey and seven colleagues began stopping their work at 9 A.M. and again at 4:30 P.M. for meditation, no matter what was going on. During an interview, she told Dr. Mehmet Oz that her little group of seven became 70 people and kept growing until it was 270. Now everyone in the company practices dhyana.
The benefits have been remarkable, she told Oz. “You can’t imagine what has happened in the company. People who used to have migraines, don’t. People are sleeping better. People have better relationships. People interact with other people better. It’s been fantastic.”
At a nationally known wellness and learning spa, meditation became the deciding factor in the decision to hire someone for a key management position in technology. “We had a pool of great candidates and had narrowed it down to three people,” says Maya, the human resources director. “It was an important hire. This person would be running a department that was somewhat troubled, and we knew it could be a rocky road for whoever stepped in. All the candidates told us they were undaunted by that, and all were highly qualified and had similar education and work experience.”
In the end, the job went to the candidate who had a longtime yoga and meditation practice. “That is what swayed us to hire him over the others,” Maya says. “We thought with the stress and challenge of this job, he would be more equipped to handle the challenges. And so far, it has proven to be a great decision. He is cool as a cucumber, always smiling and serene. And he has made a big impact in a short time.”
A SOLO PRACTICE
For people who work in places that don’t encourage—much less provide time for—periods of reflection, meditation at work might seem unrealistic. Imagine your boss finding you in your office as you practice dhyana, eyes closed, body still, senses withdrawn. When asked what you are doing, you reply, “I am trying not to think.” You’re more likely to get an “outta here” than an “atta boy.”
Meditation practice, however, doesn’t have to take big chunks of time out of your day. You can even do it at work without anyone knowing. Our friend and colleague Noah Blumenthal, author of Be the Hero: Three Powerful Ways to Overcome Challenges in Work and Life, has developed a simple meditation that he practices throughout the day, three seconds at a time. He developed it after “I had a far less than patient moment with my daughter and wished never to lose my cool with her again.” Many of his executive coaching clients have adopted the technique with great success, and he shared it with us at an author retreat. Blumenthal says, “It has been transformational for me and almost everyone I have introduced it to.”
The meditation has five parts, which take just a few seconds:
1. Deep inhale through the nose.
2. Body scan for stress, consciously trying to relax any places where you hold tension.
3. Say your focus word or intention (be present, compassion, focus, energy, patience, relax, etc.).
4. Release your breath, again through the nose.
5. Smile.
The technique is based on neuroscience, an interest of Blumenthal’s, and the idea is to connect a desired behavior—patience in his case—with breathing, body awareness, and a positive mood. (Hence, the smile.) Breathing through the nose is important, because the nasal passages are smaller than the mouth and will naturally slow your breathing. Your breath rate influences heart rate, and a slower heart rate is a key predictor of health benefits around stress. He does this technique 20 to 30 times a day without anyone noticing by using a phone app that gives him an unobtrusive signal every fifteen minutes. The power is in the repetition, because every time you repeat the practice, neurons are being fired that eventually will rewire your brain.
Just developing a robust meditation practice at home will have benefits that stay with you at work. It isn’t as difficult as you might think, and it doesn’t require sitting for hours in lotus pose. Even a few minutes of daily meditation has been shown to be beneficial for stress relief and mental clarity that last well beyond the time actually spent meditating.
At the office, taking a few quiet moments—like Steve does before his meetings—is a small time investment that reaps a big payoff. This brief disconnection from thinking about work will actually help you work more effectively. The practice will help you become more grounded and calm, and clarify your intentions and focus about what you can accomplish at work that best serves the enterprise.
Many formal programs are available that teach you to meditate, and most yoga studios and retreat centers offer meditation classes. In addition, myriad books have been written that include instructions on how to develop a dhyana practice and extol the benefits of meditation on your mind, health, and relationships. (We list some of our favorites in the Resources section of this book.) But the most essential quality in developing a meditation practice is the willingness to commit. A quiet time, a reflective space, every day.
“Dhyana is a place where action and insight become one,” write Rolf Gates and Katrina Kenison in Meditations from the Mat. “When we are in this state of sustained focus and flow, the actions of attention and the insight gained from detached observation occur simultaneously. Here, in this timeless still point, we grow up.”
Five suggestions for practicing dhyana
1. You don’t have to sit for hours in lotus pose for meditation to be effective. Start with three to five minutes a day for one week. Close your eyes and focus on breath. Feel the air in your nostrils, or notice your belly or chest rising and falling. To help still your mind, try a simple mantra such as so hum (“I am that,” with so on the inhale, hum on the exhale). After a week, what do you notice?
2. Before a meeting, carve out two to three minutes where you can sit quietly and reflect on your intentions. What do you want to create in the moment? How do you want to bring yourself present? You might want to try doing the same thing together with team members or a client before starting a project.
3. Consider starting meetings with a brief period of silence and focus on breath. If your team or coworkers are reluctant, mention the research, and ask them to experiment with the practice for a week. What changes?
4. Note the times you find it hard to focus on your work or feel unmotivated. If possible, find a quiet place where you can disconnect, meditate, or do breathing (pranayama). Then return to work. How does the practice affect your focus?
5. Consider choosing a theme or intention for your meditation time: gratitude, courage, well-being, compassion, forgiveness, truth. Stick with the topic for a set period of time. Journal about insights and discoveries that reveal themselves.