Meditation supports mental health

Victoria Mental Health Week - 5th to 12th October 2014

Are you participating in Mental Health Week? 

 This is a wonderful opportunity to assist with the ongoing process of enlightenment about the nature of mental illness and the achievability of good mental health.

We would love to help you share meditation with your team!

We offer a range of different meditation sessions .. from small information sessions, lunchtime learning, conference or strategy break-out sessions or private instruction. We come to your business and aim to share meditation as a practical and straightforward life tool that supports our ability to self-manage stress, tap into our innate creativity and problem-solving ability, engage with and collaborate better with our colleagues, and find that sense of 'balance' within a busy world.

Contact Sarah, Chief Meditation Officer at sarah@quietmind.com.au

How About a Meditation Coach?

Let' s make meditation happen ..

This was a wonderful message that I received from a client after her first private meditation session.

"Wow – I hummed classical music as a I drove back to the office. Working with you is like a mind massage!” 

Meeting one-one-one for meditation is ideal for those who find it difficult to get to a class (or prefer to learn one-on-one) and we can schedule a time that comfortably fits into your day: meeting at my office in Black Rock or if you are in Melbourne - at your office. 

Private meditation instruction allows us to look at specific meditation techniques and exercises that might best meet your unique lifestyle (learning style) and interests, and work on specific challenges or questions .. the goal being that we find the best meditation practice for YOU! 

Kind of like having a Meditation Coach .. it’s wonderfully organic, it grows with you when you are ready to leap to the next stage, and supports you when you need support - and it can fit into your schedule.

Black Rock office: Tue & Thur daytime and evening

On-site Office Instruction : available by appointment

Quiet Mind At Work in the Media

A Beginner's Guide to Meditation ..

Exciting to find Quiet Mind At Work quoted in The Age newspaper this week.

It was some time ago that I spoke with the journalist Amy Molloy about the growing interest in meditation across the corporate world.   

Many well know organisations across the globe are bringing meditation to their teams in response to the rising stress resulting from living in a world where .. “What’s work, what’s not work, it’s all become blurred” as described by Soren Gordhamer who started the Wisdom 2.0 events to examine how we can live with technology without it swallowing us whole.

The manic pace of life is causing many people to feel a sense of disconnect with life. 

When we are not present (ie. constantly distracted) to what is occurring in our world right in the present moment - we miss the important stuff.  

As our mind fill with unprocessed thoughts, images, sounds, feelings (ie. lots of rubbish) .. our 'hard-drive' (mind) starts to lose processing speed (thinking becomes difficult), efficiency falls (creativity and intuitive thought is sacrificed) and we start to physically and mentally slow down (stress impacts our body, our mind and our sense of wellbeing).

Meditation is an ancient practice (thousands of years old) that can provide us with the tools for modern day living .. tools to assist us with re-booting the hard drive.

At its simplest meditation can be viewed as a mental exercise .. and rather than throw in the job and decamp to a mountain cave for cross-legged sitting .. we can start with learning some simple but powerful Meditative Exercises which can have a considerable, and immediate, impact on our sense of wellbeing.

You can read one of our most popular Meditative Exercises in The Quiet Room HERE or give us a call and we can share a treasure-trove of meditative tools with your team.

Isn't it time you learnt to meditate?

Onsite Meditation for Stress Down Day

On July 26, I was invited to share meditation with the team at Mitre10 (Metcash) in their Melbourne head office. This was part of their Stress Down Day (a Lifeline initiative).

 

The HR team had suggested a series of classes run across the day, so that as many of their team as possible were able to attend. We ended up with six 'Introduction to Meditation' sessions so that participants could select the best time to attend; and I focussed on practices that would assist with self managing and reducing stress.

 

“Mitre 10 (Metcash) recognises that employee wellbeing can play a huge role in staff engagement, productivity and absenteeism. We are continuing to explore different ways of nurturing our employee’s wellbeing. Introducing employees to meditation is one way of recognising the impact of work stress on all of us and how as an employer, we can contribute to our employee’s wellbeing!” Human Resources

 

I felt the best place to start was with some powerful, practical and immediately beneficial Meditative Exercises .. exercises that are based on key elements of longer more traditional meditation practices.

 

They may only take a few minutes but their impact can be significant and measurable, and they provide an excellent starting point for those new to meditation. Meditative Exercises empower us to self manage our stress, quickly and easily, so we can shift from stressed ~ to calm ~ to relaxed; and then get on with our day refreshed and focussed.

 

Some feedback that I received this week ...

 

"I thought it was a terrific initiative. Very useful”

 

"The session was useful as there were a few different techniques that Sarah showed which I thought would be more effective and helpful in focussing better during meditation"

"Business has become highly stressful from a work load point of view, anything we can do to help our people cope with this is worthwhile, congratulations to HR on this initiative"

 

"Great idea and effort for the company to arrange this for their staff, especially those new to meditation. Great job!"

 

"I was pleasantly surprised with how effective the techniques taught were. I did find myself feeling quite calm and relaxed after the session"

 

Thank you everyone at Mitre10 for your enthusiasm and openness. It is constantly inspiring to share meditation with others and witness their realisation that there exists within each of us a place of deep ease and calmness .. underneath the noise and mental chatter.

 

You can find out more about onsite meditation options at www.quietmindatwork.com.au or contact sarah@quietmind.com.au

Are you ignoring your teams health?

"Bosses Ignore Mental Ilness".

Interesting article in The Age today reporting on a recent SANE survey of more than 500 workers which found 95% felt their employers were uneducated about mental illness and needed training to manage its effects. Most said ‘no support’ had been provided to them when they were mentally unwell.

It is such a surprisingly short-sighted view for organisations to put their head in the sand and not address the tremendous cost of excessive, unrelenting and demanding work stress which impacts not only the individual worker, but their team, organisation .. family and community. We have all been there .. trying to juggle 60+ work hours and maintain personal and professional demands. Why do we continue to pretend it isnt healthy?.

It really is a simple message : As human ‘beings’ we can only do some much ‘doing’! Organisations need to step up to their ‘duty of care’ in respect to health and wellbeing (physical and mental) of their employees. At no stage in our personal and professional development, or education system, do we learn how to self manage our stress. As a meditation practitioner and instructor it continues to amaze me how many people have absolutely no understanding of how to monitor and manage their stress. Learning (and practicing) some simple meditative exercises can have a profound and almost immediate impact on rising stress, tension and anxiety .. improving our mood, creativity and focus, and providing a clarity of mind .. often, right in the heat of the moment. Living with a little stress is manageable .. but long term, embedded stress leads to dis-ease and ill health.

If you would like to learn more about Meditation and how meditation can be a valuable addition to your Employee Wellness program contact Sarah at info@quietmind.com.au..

For help or information call Suicide Helpline Victoria on 1300 651 251 or Lifeline on 131 114, or visit beyondblue.org.au.

Meditation at work?

Why Introduce Meditation to your team?

Organisations are now, more than ever, aware of the need to support the physical and mental health of their employees. Is it any wonder that some of the most creative, innovative and inspiring global organisations have embraced meditation instruction for their teams .. think, Microsoft, Google, Boeing ...

Onsite Meditation Programs

What type of classes?
We can provide a range of meditation workshops or classes to support your organisational wellness program including: