Written by Vedant Kulkarni, Executive Coach
Vedant is an internationally acclaimed executive well-being coach, aka 'Friend In Need' for high performers like you, to help you clear the clutter of anxiety, overthinking and depression.
You’ve probably even tried meditation yourself at some point in your life. But did it work for you? Or did you find it boring, frustrating, or ineffective?
More probably, it was the latter. But it's not your fault. The reason? You weren't taught how to do it with the right skill. Fancy techniques asked you to visualize and imagine things only to stress you up further without ever reaching the state of deep meditative state.
In the next 3-4 minutes you'll read some shocking truths to fix the bug.
The big lie: meditation = focus or concentration
Many people think that meditation is about imagining something or concentrating your mind on some visuals, breath or emotions and keep focusing until you get it.
In reality, Meditation is the opposite of focus and concentration. Meditation is not hard work!
Focus and concentration are mental activities that require effort and reduce your energy and further lead you to stress.
Meditation is about gaining back energy by stepping back from the stress you've accumulated through all continuous work, overthinking and being anxious.
Think of it this way:
Imagine that your mind is like a lake.
When the lake is agitated and murky, you can’t see anything. The water is full of dirt and the surface is rippled and distorted.
But when the lake is calm, you can see the fish, plants, and the lake bed. You can also see your own reflection on the surface.
Meditation helps you calm the lake of your mind and clear the water from stress and emotional turmoil.
It helps you find peace and happiness within yourself, rather than depending on external stimuli.
And as by-products you have:
Deep sleep at night,
Mighty confidence to brush aside any anxieties or fears, Improved intuition, creativity, and communication, Excellence at work and mastery of your relationships, Plus, you have great health, memory and concentration!
In short, the secret sauce of success.
Another lie: mindfulness = meditation
To be mindful is to focus on the present moment, and to notice your thoughts and emotions without getting swept away by them. This requires effort, and it can be hard unless you are very skilled. It can benefit you by reducing stress, improving decisions and stabilizing your mind.
However, Meditation is a step ahead of Mindfulness.
If Mindfulness is the crust, Meditation is the filling in the pie: much more satisfying.
Mindfulness is an intellectual exercise. But to tap into inner tranquility and bliss, you need to transcend the mind. That's exactly what meditation is. Meditation traverses beyond the mind into the most sought-after state of restful awareness: full of contentment and inner peace.
And here's the hack: If you master meditation, mindfulness comes as a by-product without the mental gymnastics you would have to do.
However, doing all of this right can be a big hassle. We've developed a lifestyle where we are constantly juggling a million things with a habit of doing something all the time. Thus, sitting alone with eyes closed is a painful nightmare for many.
Moreover, closing your else, visualizing fancy stuff and hoping to get a deeply meditative experience is no more intelligent than gambling. You need to do it differently!
What if I told you that there's a unique way you could launch (literally!) yourself to escape from a stressful situation, entering a serene blissful experience in almost no time? And, you don’t have to fight your thoughts or imagine anything fancy to do it. Curious to know more? Join me at the upcoming masterstroke (it's free!). Plus, you’ll discover some unheard ways to boost your productivity and improve your connections at work and home (you’ll be blown away by what you’ll learn!).
Up next: Secrets on how Meditation can transform your Sleep quality and Anxiety levels, and How meditation is way different from sleep and wakefulness:
Meditation for better sleep
If you get meditation right, i.e. you at least spend some moments in deep relaxation and bliss, it can do wonders to improve your sleep quality, help you get into sleep faster, and give you much more energy with less sleep time (so more time to enjoy the day!). And yes, you are away from any side effects from the sleep pills or chemical powders that you would put in your body that literally depress your nervous system just to doze you off.
Meditation helps increase the duration of the Deepest Stage (slow-wave-sleep) of your sleep by enhancing the activity of the parasympathetic nervous system (responsible for rest and recovery) according to a study conducted on adults with chronic insomnia. Plus, Meditation can even improve the quality of dreams by fostering positive emotions and reducing nightmares. Hence, if you are looking to sleep faster, deeper or even get more energy from the same sleep time, Meditation is your go-to.
Sometimes, many people think that they sleep off while meditating. Is meditation the same as sleep?
Nope. Here's how they are completely different:
The mystery of meditation: How it is different from wakefulness and sleep
Many people feel that sleeping is almost similar to a meditative experience. But they're different!
Here's how:
Our brain activity changes throughout the day and night, depending on our state of consciousness. There are four main types of brain waves (aka brain cells communicating with each other) that reflect our level of alertness and relaxation:
Beta waves: They are irregular brain waves that occur when we are awake, alert, and engaged in mental activities. Beta waves are associated with high levels of stress and anxiety.
Alpha waves: They are slower and more rhythmic brain waves that occur when we are awake but relaxed. These waves are common during the initial stages of meditation practice and are associated with calmness.
Theta waves: These are even slower than alpha waves and are associated with creativity and intuition, and are generally considered a highly desirable state for promoting overall well-being. These are common in deep meditative states.
Gama waves: These are associated with intense focus and heightened concentration, and are considered to be the fastest brainwaves. They are believed to play a role in cognitive processing, memory formation, and problem-solving abilities.
Delta waves: These are associated with deep sleep and are responsible for deep rest and regeneration.
When we meditate, we shift our brain activity from beta to alpha and theta waves. So meditation allows us to be in a state of restful awareness which promotes deep relaxation and calmness along with creativity and intuition! Furthermore, research suggests that meditation can even boost your gamma wave production (amazing concentration and focus). Thus, meditation is not just different from sleep (Delta waves) but also a way more powerful tool for your well-being and performance.
Wondering what science thinks about the power of meditation? Listen to Dr. Daniel Goleman about how expert meditators have brain waves that are too amazing for science to explain. Remember, all of this is possible only when you start to get meditation done the right way.
Are you already longing already to know how you can experience this? Signup for the free masterstroke, if you haven't already, where you can learn how you can tap into this superpower of yours and experience a different dimension of life altogether.
Meditation to reduce anxiety and stress
According to the World Health Organization, more than 301 million people suffer from anxiety disorders globally. Anxiety can cause you to feel nervous, restless, and fearful. It can make you avoid social situations, procrastinate on important tasks, and overthink everything. It can also trigger symptoms such as a racing heart, sweating, trembling, and nausea.
Meditation coupled with breathing techniques and yoga can help reduce anxiety significantly by decreasing the activity of the amygdala, which is the brain region involved in fear and stress responses. Meditation also helps reduce anxiety by enhancing the connectivity between the brain regions that support attention, awareness, and self-regulation.
Beyond reducing anxiety, meditation also boosts your immune system by lowering inflammation and increasing your natural killer cells. It can enhance your decision-making by improving your attention, memory, and creativity. It can foster your happiness and well-being by increasing your positive emotions and gratitude. It can deepen your spiritual connection by expanding your awareness and compassion and so much more!
Think of how amazing and stress free your life can be if you eliminate your anxiety, boost your sleep, and memory, help with loneliness, prevent chronic illnesses, improve focus, and immunity and radiate confidence and calmness. Imagine how much you can achieve, enjoy, and contribute to the world if you can master any challenge or opportunity with ease.
For all of this to turn into reality, you need to experience this beautiful state of restful wakefulness, the state of ultimate happiness at least once in your life. Yes, you can just brush away your stress, worries and disappointments by watching a Netflix show, getting boozed or dozing off. But all of that is temporary. You'll have all your troubles back after some time, you'll be tired, dizzy, and could also harm yourself. Or you can learn the fundamental skill to rule the way you live and change the way you experience your life, and that is through having a deep meditative experience.
If you'd love to learn how you can get a glimpse of this beautiful state and get started, I look forward to seeing you in the masterstroke. (the capacity is capped, if the link is still accepting more registrations, secure your seat now!).
In a nutshell
Meditation is the way to level up your happiness and tranquility and make your life a fulfilling experience. It's futile to try and explain how amazing a meditative experience can be as it's simply indescribable beyond a point. But I hope you've got a glimpse of how life-transforming it can be for you.
If you found insights in this article helpful, share the 'aha' moments you had with your friends. Help them too, to learn to take control of their mind and emotions by joining the masterstroke alongside you.
Happy Meditating! being curious to learn more about meditation and thank you for taking action today, to learn more about how you can implement it in your life.
Vedant Kulkarni, Executive Coach
Vedant is an internationally acclaimed executive well-being coach, aka 'Friend In Need' for high performers like you, to help you clear the clutter of anxiety, overthinking and depression, take control of your emotions & feelings, and set up a road map to reach the top of your industry. Through his decades of experience and expertise he developed unique short, and effortless meditative techniques which are helping thousands high-performing executives, founders, employees, and artists to reclaim their peace of mind, take their performance to the peak, find love in what they do, and explore deeper secrets of this mind, and the life. Over the last decade, Vedant has guided CEOs, Executive Directors, and Heads of State from across the world, advised the United Nations, and closely worked with the World Health Organization on implementing solutions on mental health & wellbeing.
