5 Meditation Tips to Improve Your Focus and Productivity at Work

Many people think you need a yoga mat, a dark room, and hours of time for their meditation practice. It’s actually quite the opposite. Meditation is as simple as focusing on your breath for a minute or two. While it’s good to have a routine and a quiet meditation space for your practice, it shouldn’t stop you from incorporating meditation into your routine. The most important thing is focusing your mind and getting rid of distractions momentarily. Your meditation practice is unique to you and it can be adjusted to fit your busy professional life.

Meditating at work may seem impossible because the environment is filled to the brim with distractions. The oppressive fluorescent lights and lack of privacy don’t exactly encourage relaxation. However, meditation is about centering yourself and re-focusing your energy regardless of the situation. All you need to meditate at work is 2-5 minutes of your undivided attention. Here are some tips on how to incorporate your meditation practice into your work schedule.

Set Your Intention For The Day

The start of your work day is hectic. You’re stressed about the amount of work you need to do and anxious to get started. It’s tempting to dive in head first. But your brain needs direction, it needs to prioritize and focus on what’s the most important. Taking 5 minutes every morning to set your intention for the day and visualize what you’re going to do will keep you focused and grounded all day long.

Find a quiet meeting room or put in some headphones on at your desk and drown out the distractions with meditation music or chanting. Sit with your eyes closed and do nothing but focus on your breath, 4 seconds in, 4 seconds out. Set your intention, or what you want to get accomplished that day, and try to focus solely on that. Visualize how you’re going to accomplish your goal and stick to your intention. You’ll be much more focused and your subconscious mind will align with what your conscious mind is trying to accomplish.

Practice Samatha Meditation

This calming meditation is easy to do at your desk when you have a few minutes. A quick 5 minute Samatha Meditation will give you a burst of energy and focus that you need to finish your day strong. To practice, Samatha meditation, pick an inanimate object on your desk and focus on it for 2 to 5 minutes. That’s it. Feel your breath rise and fall as you focus only on the object.

If your mind wanders, that’s OK! It’s normal. Concentrate and keep bringing your focus back to the object on your desk. You can also set a timer to let you know when to stop.

You can do this meditation with your eyes eyes open or partially open, whatever feels more comfortable to you, the important part is focusing on your object and your breath.

Download a Meditation app

Meditation apps offer guided meditations and music that will help put you in a peaceful, balanced, focused state of mind. If you’re having trouble meditating or can’t seem to separate yourself from the work environment, these apps have guided courses that will keep you on track and guide you through practice.

Apps like Headspace or Insight Timer have meditations designed for improving your productivity and focus at work. They’re also highly customizable and will fit any length of time or situation that you may find yourself in. You can also measure your progress and find a meditation that fits your style.

The best part? These apps are free! They have premium features you can purchase but it costs you nothing to give it a try and see if it works for you.

Take a walk to clear your head

“Unplugging”, both figuratively and literally, from work and taking a walk outside can immediately improve your mental state. It allows you to collect your thoughts and incorporate some physical activity into your day instead of sitting for 8 straight hours. Moving your body will improve your circulation, lower your blood pressure, and lower your stress. The lack of screens will reduce stress and anxiety by giving your brain a much needed break to compartmentalize the flood of information it’s trying to process.

Taking a walk also gives you the opportunity to meditate. Walk to a local park or a bench and get a quick session in. Surrounding yourself with nature will calm your mind and the meditation practice will have you coming back to work rejuvenated.

Listen to Binaural Beats

Binaural beats have been proven to help memory, attention, stress, pain, headaches and migraines after just one song. Binaural beats are two different tones played at slightly different frequencies which produces a calming effect on your brain.

When your brain listens to two different frequencies it levels them out which can put you in a deeply relaxed, meditative state. If you cannot get away or even take 5 minutes to meditate, binaural beats can help soothe your mind while you work.

You’ve probably felt a similar feeling from just being out in nature. When you hear crickets and frogs making noise at different frequencies or ocean waves, it produces a calming effect. Binaural beats replicate these noises and will have the same effect on your mind as sitting on the beach, listening to the waves crash as you work.

Find a Practice that Works for You

There’s no “right” way to meditate. You need to find what works for you. If you don’t have the time, or you get too stressed out at work and need a break, meditating at your office will improve your performance, productivity, and reduce stress. Give it a try.

The Health Benefits of Hiking

All of us have “Taken a walk” before to clear our mind or remove ourselves from a stressful situation. When you’re stressed or angry, the most natural impulse is to get up and walk around. Changing your perspective does wonders for your mental state.

Hiking is the best way to change your perspective while getting a nice dose of physical activity. Instead of walking around your house, you’re walking around in nature, getting some physical activity and putting yourself in an environment where it’s easy to meditate, relax, and unplug from the stresses of everyday life.

Stanford Researchers conducted a study in 2015 and found that spending time in the great outdoors reduces stress, anxiety, and the risk of depression. Simply walking around outside can immediately improve your mental health, and hiking is the ideal way to maximize your time in nature. While you may think that you need to be in your quiet meditation space at home to clear your mind, it's actually easier when you're hiking. No access to phones, no distractions surrounding you at home, just you and Earth.

How to Hike the Right Way

As you’re hiking, focus on your breathing, take notice of each step as you walk, be present. If something in the environment demands your attention, go with it. Get rid of your expectations and just be.

If you want even more focus, leave your phone at home. If you do bring your phone, put on some relaxing music or binaural tones to get your mind to the right place. Hiking meditation will also work if you’re going on a more strenuous hike. The physical activity will make it even easier to clear your mind and ignore anxious thoughts.

Speaking of physical activity, according to the National Park Service, hiking has a laundry list of health benefits including:

• Lower stress levels, improved mood, and enhanced mental wellbeing

• A reduced risk for heart disease

• Lower blood pressure

• Lower cholesterol levels

• Improved control over healthy weight

• Lower body fat

• Improved bone density

• Improved osteoarthritis outcomes

• Increases in flexibility and coordination

• A better quality of life

Unlike walking down a paved street, hiking usually has multiple inclines, declines, and uneven terrain that will work your stabilizer muscles as well as your heart and lungs. Look at it as a more extreme form of walking.

You can also go hiking with your friends or family to have some uninterrupted bonding time that will improve relationships with the people closest to you. Sharing the experience with other people will also give you an extra boost of motivation to go hiking.

Make Hiking a Habit

You’ve probably heard the advice “put yourself in a position to succeed”. That’s what you’re doing when you make the choice to take a hike or go hiking on a regular basis. Putting yourself in nature is conducive to physical activity and meditation. Removing yourself from a stagnant, stressful environment is great on its own. Add in some hiking and unplugging from your phone and you have a highly beneficial habit that will continuously improve your physical and mental health.

If you’re looking to get started, just get outside. Walk around the public park near your house. Find an easy trail that you can walk down. You don’t need to hike up a mountain or cut yourself off from society completely. Do something simple. Once you feel the benefits, you’ll want to keep going.

Looking for a Hiking Partner?

Sign up for a nature hike led by Inspirational Retreats! Our professional hikers will lead you through a beautiful hike through nature that features meditation sessions and snacks. This is the perfect way to get started and make some hiking buddies that you can go with in the future.