They are the simplest instructions in the world: Sit in a comfortable position, close your eyes, clear your mind and try to focus on the present moment. Yet I am confident that anyone who has tried meditation will agree with me that what seems so basic and easy on paper is often incredibly challenging in real life.

The myth of multitasking: “Always-on, multitasking work environments are killing productivity, dampening creativity and making us unhappy,”  (more…)

At 4:30, when most of Wall Street is winding down, Walter Zimmermann begins a highstakes, high-wire act conducted live before a paying audience. About 200 institutional investors—including airlines and oil companies—shell out up to $3,000 a month to catch his daily webcast on the volatile energy markets, a performance that can move hundreds of millions of dollars. (more…)

As business leaders we need to have a clear picture of present reality in order to make effective decisions. Meditation is a practice designed to clear the mind of stress and distortion, and allow you to experience present reality. (more…)

Mindlessness — not a good quality for any organization — has led to some questionable assumptions about the need for leaders; namely that 1) those who lead have privileged and reliable abilities and knowledge — what are often described as “leadership competencies” ; and 2) people need to be led to achieve their goals. (more…)

“The National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health in the US estimate that stress-related ailments cost companies about $200 billion a year in increased absenteeism, tardiness, and the loss of talented workers. Between 70% to 90% of employee hospital visits are linked to stress. And job tension is directly tied to a lack of productivity and loss of competitive edge. (more…)

This document contains a list of major employers who have integrated mindfulness in some shape or form into the workplace, and a few examples of how mindfulness is being used. (more…)

As far as investments go, Atul Thakkar says nothing provides a greater return than meditation.

And Thakkar does know business. A former electrical engineer, Thakkar is the co-founder, president and chief executive officer of Attronica, a Maryland-based computer and information technology company that pulled in revenues of more than $53 million in 2006. (more…)

With hellish hours and info overload now the norm, the C-Suite set is turning to extreme meditation to cope, says Fortune’s Oliver Ryan. (more…)