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A beginner's guide to the powerful practice of mindfulness. By reclaiming the present moment with mindfulness practice, you can improve performance and increase wellbeing - and improve chocolate too!
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David Michie - Why Mindfulness is Better Than Chocolate (Extract)
A beginner's guide to the powerful practice of mindfulness. By reclaiming the present moment with mindfulness practice, you can improve performance and increase wellbeing - and improve chocolate too!
A beginner's guide to the powerful practice of mindfulness. By reclaiming the present moment with mindfulness practice, you can improve performance and increase wellbeing - and improve chocolate too!
DEEP HAPPI NESS Cover design: Alissa Dinallo MI N D , B O DY , S P I R I T Mindfulness practice can help you reduce stress, improve performance, manage pain and increase wellbeing. These are the reasons why elite athletes, performing artists and business leaders are taking up the practice, and why it is being introduced into the worlds most successful companies, banks, business schoolseven the US Army. David Michie introduces mindfulness practice and ofers innovative solutions to common obstacles. Drawing on ancient Buddhist teachings and contemporary science, he also takes us beyond mindfulness lite, ofering lucid instructions on how to experience the pristine nature of ones own consciousness directlyan encounter that is truly life-changing. Written with warmth and good humour, Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate is the ultimate guide to self-discovery. It will make chocolate taste better too! David Michie demonstrates a ne knack for capturing the essence of this important topic and presenting it in a fun and accessible way. Dr Timothy Sharp, The Happiness Institute DAVID MICHIE is an internationally published writer and meditation coach. He is author of the bestselling Hurry Up and Meditate, Buddhism for Busy People, Enlightenment to Go and The Dalai Lamas Cat series. He brings to this book his expertise in mind training as a practising Buddhist, and his professional experience of the corporate world. 2 3 . 1 3 mm CMYK MAT T L AMI NAT I ON www.davidmichie.com YOUR GUI DE TO I NNER PEACE, ENHANCED FOCUS and DEEP HAPPI NESS Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 3 4/04/14 3:01 PM First published in 2014 Copyright Mosaic Reputation Management 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (the Act) allows a maximum of one chapter or 10 per cent of this book, whichever is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (Australia) under the Act. Inspired Living, an imprint of Allen & Unwin 83 Alexander Street Crows Nest NSW 2065 Australia Phone: (61 2) 8425 0100 Email: info@allenandunwin.com Web: www.allenandunwin.com Cataloguing-in-Publication details are available from the National Library of Australia www.trove.nla.gov.au ISBN 978 1 74331 913 0 Internal design by Alissa Dinallo Set in 12/18 pt Bulmer MT by Midland Typesetters, Australia Printed and bound in Australia by Grifn Press 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 The paper in this book is FSC
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socially beneficial and economically viable management of the worlds forests. C009448 Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 4 4/04/14 3:01 PM Contents 1. Is mindfulness really better than chocolate? 1 2. What is mindfulness and why does it matter? 15 3. How to meditate 29 4. The benets of meditation and mindfulness 49 5. How mindfulness benets organisations 89 6. Ten tips for getting into the meditation habit 116 7. How to apply mindfulness in your daily life 134 8. Our mindfulness journey 147 9. How mindfulness makes us happier 167 10. What is mind? 195 11. How to meditate on your own mind 224 12. Healing and the mind 255 Epilogue 284 Acknowledgements 290 Further reading 293 Notes 295 Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 7 4/04/14 3:01 PM 1 1 Is mindfulness really better than chocolate? All of human unhappiness is due to the inability to sit still in a room alone. BLAISE PASCAL I s mindfulness really better than chocolate? Come to think of it, is anything better than chocolate? Or is the title of this book nothing more than a shameless ploy to grab your attention? As it happens, the idea that mindfulness is better than chocolate is based on compelling research. More than 2000 people in the United States took part in an innovative study using smartphone technology. Panel members were sent ques- tions at different times of the day and night asking what they were doing, what they were thinking and how happy they felt. 1 The analysis, published by Harvard University psycholo- gists Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert in Science Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 1 4/04/14 3:01 PM 2 magazine, revealed three important facts. First, people were not thinking about what they were doing 47 per cent of the time. Second, people were unhappier when their minds were wandering than when they were not. And third, what people were thinking was a better predictor of their happiness than what they were doing. The researchers summarised: A human mind is a wander- ing mind, and a wandering mind is an unhappy mind. The ability to think about what is not happening is a cognitive achievement that comes at an emotional cost. Long ago, Buddhists reached much the same conclusion. An ancient tale tells of a novice who asked an enlightened monk to reveal the secret of happiness. The monk told him, I eat, and I walk and I sleep. When the novice replied that he also did these things, the monk replied, When I eat, I eat. When I walk, I walk. When I sleep, I sleep. Buddha and the Harvard Psychology Department are most denitely on the same page when it comes to mindful- ness. And the Harvard ndings are rich with implications for human behaviour. But what concerns us right now is chocolate. The study shows were at our happiest when our mind is not wanderingthat is, when were in a state of mindfulness. But the nature of peoples activities had only a modest impact on whether their minds wandered. It would seem that whether Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 2 4/04/14 3:01 PM 3 were washing the dishes or eating the most mouth-wateringly delicious Belgian praline, were just as likely to have a wander- ing mind. Eating chocolate is no guarantee that were thinking about what were doing. Which is why mindfulness will always trump chocolate as a means of delivering happiness. Perhaps not surprisingly, theres one human activity where mindfulness is consistently high: sex. Only 10 per cent of people reported their minds wandering during this activity, so if Id called this book Why mindfulness is better than sex, I would have found myself on much shakier ground. Incidentally, one cant help speculating on what those 10 per cent of people who reported wandering minds during sex were actually thinking about. Could the old clich of grocery lists be true? More research, please! I will admit, however, to being a little mischievous in creating a false dichotomy between mindfulness and choco- late. Theres no reason to choose between the two. On the contrary, the highlight of my mindfulness seminars is often an exercise I call the Lindt technique, where I invite participants to mindfully enjoy a Lindt chocolate. Their instructions are to focus exclusively on the sensation of eating a chocolate, every element in forensic detail, from opening the foil wrapper to the appearance and heft of the sphere, the explosion of delicious Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 3 4/04/14 3:01 PM 4 avours, and savouring the smooth, liquid heart of the choco- late as it bursts in the mouth. Are you salivating yet? For two or three minutes a blissful silence ensues. Mind fulness applied to the eating of chocolatetheres some- thing that can give even the proverbial grocery lists a run for their money! Mindfulness in the mainstream Both mindfulness and meditation have become very fashion- able of late. Just as the cheesecloth and hashish brigade of the 1970s have long since matured to become pillars of the estab- lishment, so too our understanding of meditation has evolved in recent decades from hippie-trippy mysticism to mainstream practice. Although the difference between meditation and mind- fulness will be described in more detail later, at the outset its important to note the distinction between the two words. When were being mindful, were paying attention to the present moment, deliberately and non-judgementally. When were meditating, were being mindful of a specic object such as the sensation of the breath at the tip of our nostrilsfor a sustained period of time. Meditation is, if you like, the training ground for mindfulness. Regular meditation enhances Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 4 4/04/14 3:01 PM 5 our ability to be mindful. We can all enjoy mindfully drinking a cup of coffee without the benet of meditation practice, but our capacity for mindfulness is greatly enhanced if we meditate regularly. Doctors these days are as likely to recommend medi- tation for stress management as they are to prescribe medication. Many of the worlds highest prole consumer companies, such as Google, Apple, Facebook and Twitter, actively support meditation in their workplaces, as do some of the largest nancial institutions, accounting rms, manufac- turers and other corporations. No best practice management school is complete these days without a mindful leadership program. The worlds most elite athletes, sports stars and performing artists employ techniques borrowed from the mindfulness toolbox. Mindfulness is a foundation practice across the increasingly popular practices of yoga, tai chi and a variety of martial arts. Meditation programs are demon- strably among the most successful deployed in prisons to reduce re-offence rates. A wave of research since the turn of the century at laboratories in California, New England, Europe and Australia is focusing on the emerging disci- pline of contemplative neuroscience. Even the US Marines have got in on the act, coaching soldiers in meditation-based exercises before deploying them in the worlds most dangerous war zones. Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 5 4/04/14 3:01 PM 6 Mindfulness practices are millennia old, originating in eastern traditions, notably Buddhism, which has extensively practised, debated, documented and taught a range of tech- niques for a variety of purposes. Given that Buddhism has at its heart a reverence for all forms of life, the idea of teaching medi- tation to soldiers about to parachute into battle may well raise the eyebrows of some. But in describing the exercise as like doing push-ups for the brain, the US Army general respons- ible pithily summarised the way meditation has been reframed: just as a healthy body demands regular exercise, goes this paradigm, a healthy mind requires the same. 2 This move to the mainstream has inevitably been accom- panied by a urry of books. Without any particular plan to build a library on the subject, I have on my personal book- shelves alone a section of books on mindfulness and meditation about a metre long, picked up here and there in recent years. These books espouse a variety of approaches ranging from the determinedly practical to the quirkily esoteric. Books I dont have on my shelves include those by an ever-expanding group of self-styled teachers and mind- fulness gurus who go to quite some lengths in the pursuit of mystication. A liberal sprinkling of and signs is usually warning enough. The requirement to spend large sums of money on weekend intensives should also cause the brow to wrinkle. For the truth is that mindfulness is a simple Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 6 4/04/14 3:01 PM 7 subjectdifcult to practise, no question, but straight- forward to explain. Given all this, does the world need yet another book on mindfulness? The dumbing down of mindfulness Some months ago I was delivering a mindfulness seminar to a group of engineers at a business school. The participants were an engaged bunch, and a meditation exercise was followed by a lively Q&A session, during which I was asked: Why do Buddhist monks meditate? After all, they dont have any stress. All they have to do is hang around for the next meal to arrive. On the surface of things, this is perhaps a reasonable question. And going by the smiles and nodding, it was clear that this observation chimed with quite a few others in the room. If we assume for a moment that the questioner was essen- tially correct, and that the life of a Buddhist monk is one long picnic waiting for the next course to be served, it may indeed seem mystifying why stress management would be called for. But for me the question really summed up the tragically diminished idea many people have of what mindfulness and meditation are all about. Yes, theyre great for managing stress, but that isnt why Buddhists do them. Stress management isnt Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 7 4/04/14 3:01 PM 8 the main reason, nor even a particularly important part of our motivation. To put things in a current, western perspective, it was as if my questioner was asking why people who arent on Facebook bother with internet access. Why else would you want to go online? I felt the need to write this book because Id like to share the real treasure of mindfulnessits truly transformative power, the authentic reason Buddhist monks meditate. This explanation is left behind, overlooked, dumbed down or never even explored by some contemporary mindfulness teachers and not necessarily with bad intentions. Mindfulness Lite is an easier sell to a wide audience, and cant the world use as many mindful people as possible, albeit of the push-ups for the brain variety? Besides, the benets of meditation are so numerous and now so well established by researchers that you dont need to take people too far along the journey for them to start noticing the favourable physical and psychological effects, so why go further? At the heart of this reluctance to venture into the heart- land of meditation, Im guessing, is also a certain fear. When people are given the tools to observe the true nature of their own minds for themselves, the experience is a subtle but in evi- table game-changer. When the rug is well and truly pulled out from beneath the confection of the self we have come to believe ourselves to be, we can never experience ourselves in Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 8 4/04/14 3:01 PM 9 quite the same way again. Like being able to see the alterna- tive perspective in one of those famous optical illusions, we can never go back to our former innocence. Our view of our self changes forever. East and West In writing this book, Im doing so not as a Buddhist monk tempting though the prospect of a lifetimes free catering may benor as someone claiming any preternatural mental abilities. The prosaic truth is that Im a regular middle-aged corporate consultant with many of the usual personal, business and nancial responsibilities. In the midst of this typically busy 21st-century life, I have nevertheless found, in meditation and mindfulness, practices that have transformed my expe- rience of reality dramatically for the better. And I know from talking to other meditators that its the same for them, too. My own meditation journey has been informed by Tibetan Buddhism, in particular the lineage established in Australia by the pre-eminent Geshe Acharya Thubten Loden and, more directly, through the teachings Ive received from my kind and precious teacher, Les Sheehy. While the knowledge and expe- rience I have acquired has been guided by them, any failure in my attempt to pass on their profound wisdom is very much my own doing. Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 9 4/04/14 3:01 PM 10 While I will refer to Buddhist sources and insights where relevant, its important to note that the study of our own minds isnt about theory or belief. Its about seeing whats there for ourselves. Ill also refer to research from scientic endeavours in elds as varied as psychology, neuroscience, medicine, genetics and quantum physics. One of the joys of being alive in the early part of the 21st century is witnessing the convergence of so many differ- ent dynamicsancient and contemporary, outer and inner, eastern and westernin arriving at a holistic understanding of consciousness. For some people, the proliferation of empirical studies showing the benets of mindfulness encourages personal exploration. Others have a more intuitive understanding of the value of this practice. I hope in this book to share ideas that will inspire both intuitive and analytical thinkers, both left- brain and right-brain thinkers. I have also intentionally interwoven chapters on mindful- ness theory with those explaining how to practise meditation. As fascinating as concepts of mindfulness are, the only way they can have a powerful personal impact is if we apply them. Ideas, theories and evidence only get us so far. Then we need to move beyond concept. In my previous non-ction books, Buddhism for Busy People, Hurry Up and Meditate and Enlightenment to Go, Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 10 4/04/14 3:01 PM 11 Ive shared some of the experiences of my own journey, and I do so in this book, too. This isnt because Im the repository of especially arcane insights, but because I hope youll nd in this more personal accountrather than a straightforward exposition of the subjectthemes and discoveries you can relate to, landmarks that may be useful in your own exploration of the mind. An outline of the mindfulness journey We begin our exploration with the nuts and bolts of mindful- nesswhat it is, why it works and how we can benet from it in basic but profound ways. Stress management? Certainly! Boosting our immune systems and pushing back our biological clocks? That too! The physical and psychological benets of mindfulness, even if taken no further than this, are well worth getting out of bed ten minutes earlier for every morning. We then move onto the possibilities offered by mindful- ness in changing the content of your ongoing conversation with yourself. Chatter, chatter, chatter. Were all up to it. But are there recurring themes in this constant stream of self-talk that dont serve you well? For example, are you a worrier, constantly anticipating all the things that could possibly go wrong then convincing yourself that the worst outcome is almost certain? Or are you a victim, feeling you can never make Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 11 4/04/14 3:01 PM 12 any headway because of your circumstances, past events or the people in your life? Or are you someone who struggles to nd any compelling purpose or happiness beyond lling your days with as many pleasurable distractions as possible? The combination of mindfulness with what has become known as cognitive behaviour training is one of the most powerful transformation modalities. Creating space amid all the mental agitation, discovering that we can become the observers of our thoughts rather than their unwitting slaves this is another extraordinary consequence of a more mindful life. Its a consequence that allows us to get proactive about what goes on in our mind, take charge of our own mental trajectories and thereby exercise choice over the destinies to which our every thought propels us. The main eventmind itself And then we come to mind itself. What it is. What it is not. Were no longer doing push-ups herewere onto something much more exciting! Ill guide you through the practical steps by which you can experience your own mind for yourself, not as a concept or intellectual idea, but directly and rsthand. Youll be empowered to experience the nature of your own consciousness, and if youre anything like most people whove never tried this before, youll nd, in those rst glimpses of Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 12 4/04/14 3:01 PM 13 the pure nature of your own mind, an extraordinary truth. Youll see for yourself how your mind is, quite literally, innite. How it has no beginning and no end. How, far from being some existential void, its imbued with the most profound happiness-giving qualities. Youll experience the paradox that even though you set out to explore your mind, the result is as much a feeling as it is a perception. Its an experience beyond concept and for which words are therefore wholly inadequate, but that may be hinted at using such terms as oceanic tranquillity and radiant love. Even the briefest encounter with this state is life-changing, because when we can free ourselves from the agitation or dullness that pervades our minds and encounter our own true natures, if only momentarily, we can never go back to believ- ing ourselves to be nothing more than a bag of bones. We have experienced a dimension of being that transcends all our usual ideas of self. We have come home. When we begin to explore our own mind, we usually do so for reasons of self-discovery. But an interesting thing happens, because in experiencing our own true nature, we come to recognise that just as we are, others are too. Our everyday experience of people is one in which we habitually observe and judge based on what we see, at a conventional level, as their apparent characteristics. Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 13 4/04/14 3:01 PM 14 Discovering that these characteristics are, ultimately, as temporary and insignicant as our own, a shift occurs. Others may continue the way theyve always seemed to be, but now we know better. Aware of the more important way in which they exist, as well as the difculties and challenges they must inevitably endure because of their profoundly self-limiting beliefs, our compassion quite naturally arises. Mindfulness is no longer just about me. It becomes panoramic. I can think of nothing more enduringly fascinating or life-enhancing than the practice of mindfulness. No matter where you are on your own journey, I hope you nd in this book fresh insights and inspiration to encourage your further exploration. In particular, its my heartfelt wish that you may abide, however eetingly, in your own unobstructed mind. For there youll discover that your own true nature is one of timeless and transcendental bliss. Chocolate, schmocolate. Show me the meditation cushion! Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 14 4/04/14 3:01 PM David Michie demonstrates a ne knack for capturing the essence of this important topic and presenting it in a fun and accessible way. In Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate he perfectly explains what mindfulness is, why its important and, most notably, how we can practise and integrate it into our lives. I know for a fact that mindful- ness can enhance health and happiness; this book will help any reader become more mindful. Dr Timothy Sharp, The Happiness Institute A practical and informed exposition of meditative techniques, complemented by a lucid scientic overview. Gordon Parker AO, Scientia Professor of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales Essential reading for leaders who want to train their minds to engage in strategic thought. Emeritus Professor Gary Martin, CEO, Australian Institute of Management WA A delightful read, providing practical tools and examples around mindfulness and meditation; steeped in tradition, yet brought to life in the modern world. The topic is supported with considerable research examples which resonate with me as a practitioner in the eld of positive psychology and it was a joy to see it done so clearly. Sue Langley, Emotional Intelligence Worldwide A fascinating and illuminating journey into the many rewards that practising mindfulness can bring: from stress release, to greater focus, to a deeper understanding of your own mind. Beth Phelan, World Happiness Forum Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 1 4/04/14 3:01 PM YOUR GUI DE TO I NNER PEACE, ENHANCED FOCUS and DEEP HAPPI NESS Also by David Michie Buddhism for Busy People Hurry Up and Meditate Enlightenment To Go The Dalai Lamas Cat The Art of Purring Why Mindfulness is Better than Chocolate.indd 2 14/04/14 3:59 PM