Meditation is NOT about relaxation. It is mind training.

Since I started practicing meditation regularly, I quickly discovered how powerful this practice could be if it were widespread in our society. Specifically, in the workplace, it has the potential to transform organizations into highly efficient, collaborative, creative, and productive forces, often referred to as high-performance teams.

Throughout my experience, whenever I share this thought with business leaders and professionals, I’m normally met with skepticism and a sense that this is “fluffy” talk. It always strikes me how the adjective “fluffy” can be used when there is tremendous and undeniable scientific evidence supporting meditation’s benefits. Among various discoveries, researchers have found that regular meditation practice results in denser grey matter in areas of the brain related to memory and emotional processing, along with increased focus, empathy, and resilience (curiously, the very traits leaders often say they miss in their teams). Overall, there is a huge body of research showing that meditation practice boosts performance in almost all areas, which leads to the question: Why, then, is meditation often seen as “fluffy” when it comes to business performance?

One reason is that meditation is wrongly perceived as a relaxing exercise. Unfortunately, there is this widespread fallacy that meditation is simply about relaxation and stress relief. It is not. It is a training exercise for your brain—the “machine” behind all successful careers and companies.

Imagine you start playing a sport, say padel. You enjoy it so much that you commit to playing twice a week with your friends. It’s satisfying and fun to gather and play together. After a few months, you’ll notice two things: you’re mastering movements and improving at the game, and your body starts looking fitter! Regardless of your initial motivation, consistent practice yields physical results.

Meditation is just like that. Instead of training the body, meditation is a regular, systematic training of your mind, where you develop your attention span by teaching the wandering mind how to behave. The result, after consistent practice, is a calm mind with clear discernment and laser-sharp focus that you can direct at will. If you’ve ever struggled to move your mind away from a nagging thought, you’ll understand how this is a tremendously useful skill. The relaxation people associate with meditation is merely a side effect, just as becoming fitter is a side effect of consistently playing padel.

Meditation is work. Just as it takes time for the body to develop muscle, it takes time for the mind to adapt to the rigorous mental training of bringing it back to an object of attention as many times as necessary during a session. Over time, this produces the capability for one-pointed attention—a hallmark of genius. Anyone with this skill is bound to make substantial contributions in their field of work. And when you achieve this, you also cultivate what it takes to lead a good life: rock-solid security, deep relationships, clear judgment, and a sense of trust in life that no adversity can shake.

It is essential to drop preconceived notions about meditation and start seeing it for what it is: a tool for unshakable mental stability that can elevate individuals and organizations to the next level of success. Meditation has the power to mitigate many of the issues that lead to poor performance and thousands of wasted working hours spent on meaningless discussions. It empowers individuals to break free from mental patterns that cause stress, frustration, and burnout. Above all, it has untapped potential to bring meaning to people’s lives, which reflects in societies that progress. Can you imagine the potential of a life with laser-sharp focus and resilience?

If you're curious about meditation and want to explore how it can transform your focus, resilience, and overall performance—both personally and professionally—I’d love to help you get started. Reach out, and let’s discuss how this powerful practice can make a difference in your