Today, some people might still find the concept of meditating at their desk somewhat strange. Most people, especially those in corporate settings, still believe that work is a time for maximum output only. However, as the world changes, so do our basic needs. Not wants, but needs. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs indeed requires an upgrade in the fast-paced world we live in today. To meditate at your desk is to be productive. At work, university, school or at home. It is to be ahead of the game. And the game is about being able to go further and work harder for longer periods of time while enjoying a high-quality life, says Mark L Lockwood, the clinical director of the Centre for Healing and Life Transformation.
A lot of our corporate clients today do small and short meditations several times a day at their desks or in their cars, or in meditation and contemplation rooms at their offices if they have them. People who work from home are also encouraged to be mindful of getting up and getting away from the house and desk for short walks, which can be mindful and meditative in themselves throughout the day. In other words, there are no excuses not to practice what we call zeros and ones. Life, like yourself and like everything else, is a binary system that demands focus and then relaxation. Action and then contemplation. Extreme focus and then quiet meditation. As day is to night and Rose is to Thorn, so is meditation to the corporate environment.
To meditate at your desk is to be productive. It is to be ahead of the game. And the game is being able to go further and harder for longer periods of time while enjoying a high quality life
Mark L Lockwood BA(hons)(psy)
There are many ways to meditate at your desk or anywhere else, for that matter. When we become mindful at a time when we feel the need for rest coming on, we can begin a meditative practice. Awareness is the first step to enjoying a high-quality life. When you feel the state of rest beckoning at your door, rather stop for a minute and become still. Focus on your breath and breathe deeply, being mindful of the breaths in and breaths out. When you are ready, then soften or close your eyes and go with what we call the flow.
Noticing is a gift. When you are focusing like this, you are using your contemplative intelligence to be fully present, at the very least. When you read and direct your attention, you automatically take control of the body, heart, and mind. A good short practice to do daily is a body scan. It moves clockwise from the top of your head on the right-hand side and focuses on that part of your prefrontal cortex. You can even name the body part quickly and quietly to yourself. Moving through body parts as a cycle helps us attain focus instantly. Temple, right cheek, nostril, and then ear are a start. Move down to the neck, shoulders, arms, and hands, and keep the work going clockwise until you are back at your left temple.
Many practitioners arguing that the sitting position in meditation is by far the best for multiple reasons. If you lie down the chances of falling asleep are far greater. Sitting in an alert position with your back straight and not bend keeps you focused and awake and also allows energy to flow freely from the base of your spine to the crown of your head. Many teachers including headspace co-founder Andy Paddicomb Believe that when the body is upright body and mind tend to be more alert and attentive. This is what we call body heart and brain coherence. This coherence is something we can learn a lot about from the Heart-math Institute. At the end of the day it is what works best for you over time.
Meditation which also means to sit is almost directly suited as a mindfulness practice to an office and desk for that matter. Busy days at the office can leave us feeling mentally and emotionally drained. Physically we are also likely to hunch over our desks for hours on end which is no good for either our energy or our posture or our minds. The most important thing to learn about how to meditate at your desk is to become aware that short breaks everyday are of major importance. They end up peaking our performance instead of breaking our flow. Go, go, go is not flow.
Ways to Meditate at your desk
Here are two visual ways to Meditate at your desk that you can try. The first is about a minute long, and the second is a kaleidoscope meditation of about 15 minutes. People have already written in to sing the praises of this short visual meditation practice and liken it to other psychological mindful practices like EMDR and the like.
If you’re able to take an hour’s walk a day, try and do a walking meditation with headphones. A CQ Meditation is not designed to get you to just chill out but also to shift energy as well as manufacture it so that you can then work at your peak for whatever important work you may have coming up next.
If home is where the heart is then the office is where the mind is. Use your imagination and your creativity to get out of your small mind and into the bigger picture of an unlimited life
Mark L Lockwood BA(hons)(psy)
For more ways to meditate at your desk or jump right in and heal your life from depression, addictions, personality disorders, and more, find out about Mark’s work at The Center and get there. No longer does anyone need to stay stuck any longer. You can, should, and probably will heal your life. Then, the sky is truly the limit!
