Some people find it difficult to concentrate at work because they are constantly bombarded with various thoughts. Others might find themselves getting distracted easily by their co-workers or the news in the office. Some of these distractions can lead to a lack of productivity, but meditation can help you overcome that, among other benefits of meditation at work.

Research has shown that meditation benefits physical and emotional health, boosting cognition, mood, and performance. Regarding your work environment, meditating has been shown to have benefits explicitly related to business, such as increased productivity at work, enhanced learning, and memory skills, improved decision-making skills, and focus on tasks. Below are the benefits of meditation at work.

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Benefits of meditation in the workplace

Fights insomnia

There is a large body of evidence to back this up, with studies showing that subjects who practiced meditation saw improvements in quality and quantity of sleep, with increased concentration the following day by 37%. Meditation also contains polyphasic sleep, which means you can sleep for a few hours, then wake up and keep going without needing any time to rest or refresh yourself when you are done. That makes it an appropriate tool for people involved in high-energy work such as science or technology, where you need all the focus available but have trouble getting eight hours of quality rest per night.

Reduction of stress

When dealing with a stressful situation at work, it can be hard to focus on the task at hand. Sometimes we may even get so wrapped up in our emotional discomfort that we fail to make rational decisions that could lead to better choices in the future. However, by one of the benefits of meditation at work, is we can recognize when our emotions want recognition and attention so that we don’t get overwhelmed or stressed by them. For example, an August 2012 study by Wegner et al. showed that an eight-week mindfulness meditation course reduced stress in undergraduate students.

Stress forms a normal part of life; however, too much stress can lead to an unhealthy lifestyle. It affects your work performance and can slow down productivity. Job promotion, salary raises, time-off requests, and more will be out of reach because you are not getting enough done during the day.

Become more focused on your tasks

With their concentration practice, the ancient Buddhist monks could memorize thousands of pages of texts to teach others what they had learned. By dropping their thoughts into their breath and focusing on one object for long periods, our minds become more focused, allowing us to focus on tasks that we may have previously found difficult or impossible. For example, in 2011, Siegel et al. showed that mindfulness meditation helped increase executive attention in undergraduates with ADHD. Meditation also helps us to concentrate by slowing the brain’s alpha waves, allowing us to feel more relaxed and focused on one thing at a time.

Improve your ability to do math and write correctly

When you meditate, you also strengthen your mind’s ability to focus on details. For example, you can easily notice minute changes in how the numbers are written or how certain words are written. When you can pick up on the little details in your work, it will help improve your work quality and get things done correctly the first time around. These kinds of details help build trust within your company and increase productivity.

Learn the art of listening more

One of the benefits of meditation at work, is you can take control of your thoughts and learn how to focus on your breathing. That will make it easier for you to become more aware of what is being said, and even when someone is speaking to you, they will find it easier to listen without worrying about what they should be saying next. That can also help you develop better listening skills, as making others feel heard is an integral part of communication.

Create the state of grace in your business life

Many people have had experiences with difficult conditions at work that cause them anxiety or stress out their co-workers and bosses. They may not be able to cope with their co-workers and make a wrong impression on their superiors. Learning how to meditate can help you create a state of grace in your business life where you can maintain control and come across as calm, cool, and collected.

Make better decisions

When you learn how to calm your mind, it will be easier for you to become more aware of your decision and see its benefits before actually doing it. Awareness is everything when it comes to making good decisions, so you will have better outcomes when you can be more aware before even making a choice.

Enhance your learning skills

When you meditate regularly, you will be able to develop your mind’s ability to learn new things. This is because researchers have found meditation to increase dopamine levels in the brain, among other benefits which help the brain develop new connections and support neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is when the brain can change itself physically, so with meditation, you are improving neuroplasticity which results in your mind learning faster and better. As a result, it may become easier for you to pick up on patterns and make connections between what you already know. That can also lead to making better decisions about how best to achieve certain goals that may be difficult at first.

Improve your work performance

As mentioned earlier, one of the benefits of meditation at work is improving your work performance. When you are calmer, you will be able to focus better on tasks and develop better solutions to your problems. You will be able to focus on the task at hand instead of worrying about what may happen in a day or how you react to certain things. Meditation also helps improve decision-making skills and the ability to cope with stressors when it is too late for you to react, which is essential for those with anxiety disorders or who don’t like heights.

Learn to listen to your thoughts and not react to them

When you know how your thoughts can get in the way of making a decision, you can practice not reacting to them. For example, you might become aware that the last time you were in a situation, the thought popped into your head, “Why won’t he ask me out on a date?” It was because you were worrying about what other people might say if he asked you out and how it would look. You didn’t realize that an automatic reaction from worry caused these thoughts to come up. So meditation can provide this awareness so that you don’t feel like your thoughts dictate your actions.

Build trust between you and your co-workers

When you become more peaceful with yourself, it can help your co-workers and bosses trust you. That is because they will not feel as stressed out around you as before. They will also be able to trust that you have your priorities in order and follow through on projects or tasks when given to you.

Increased employee satisfaction

With the increased focus and reduction of stress that a mindfulness meditation practice brings, employees are more likely to be happy at work. For instance, one of the recent surveys by the National Business Group on Health revealed that more than half of employers are willing to provide classes for employees to help them cope with stress, anxiety, and depression, with many adding it as a benefit for all employees in 2013. In addition, nearly 56 percent of employers said they find their employees better able to handle stressful situations thanks to meditation programs.

It helps you be more creative

The creative process often involves connecting inspiration with knowledge. You generate many ideas in your mind, but to get on a project or take one step further, you need to link your thoughts with the right information. Meditation can help with this by boosting your creativity and helping you find the answers when you are stuck on a problem.
Meditation allows you to work at your own pace without being distracted by other people’s deadlines. As more people connect from home and work remotely, meditation can help with isolation from being out of the office.

Community and society benefits

Companies that support meditation in the workplace see the benefits of meditation at work such as employees become more settled in their jobs. Employees are more focused on their tasks, happier, and less stressed. By promoting good health, meditation benefits the team as it decreases absenteeism, making for a more harmonious environment for everyone. Meditation also improves people’s ability to have more productive conversations with their colleagues and management.

Conclusion

Work demand is increasing, and work-life balance is decreasing. In most cases, stress levels remain high and rising, and the focus on productivity has led to a neglect of other aspects of life, including mental, physical, and social health. Your life isn’t just about your work – it’s also about your family, friends, hobbies, pets, and community. To become more productive in all aspects of your life, you need to include meditation as part of that equation. It may not seem like a “fun” time, but it will make you considerably more productive while increasing happiness and reducing stress levels in both your personal and professional life. Meditation can be taught and encouraged in the workplace through seminars, workshops, and even in-house meditation programs. Declutter The Mind is a guided meditation app that you can bring to your workplace. It gives folks on your team access to practices through their mobile device, that they can sit and do on their own time, with as much privacy as they need. There are practices for everything from work stress to managing burnout.