The Surprising New Age Habit of Outrageously Successful People

What do Oprah, Russell Simmons, and Arianna Huffington all have in common? While they are all obviously successful people they also all engage in one very important daily habit, meditation. It used to be people made fun of those who were "new age" but meditation may just be the new hip thing to do.

After one meditation, Oprah was quoted as saying:

"I walked away feeling fuller than when I'd come in. Full of hope, a sense of contentment, and deep joy. Knowing for sure that even in the daily craziness that bombards us from every direction, there is -- still -- the constancy of stillness. Only from that space can you create your best work and your best life."

If you haven't yet made the practice of meditation a constant companion in your life, you may want to rethink your priorities - because it seems as if meditation and success are intricately linked.

Ray Dalio, the billionaire and founder of Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund firm, was quoted as saying:

"Meditation more than anything in my life was the biggest ingredient of whatever success I've had."

More and more companies and world leaders are speaking up and talking about the benefits of meditation more than ever before.

While those of us in the new age community have known about the benefits of a daily meditative practice for quite some time, it seems as if the practice of meditation is getting some much-needed validation and press from the business world.

There are many health benefits to a regular meditative practice and you don't really need any special skills to engage in one. Life can be overwhelming at times and meditation can help you cope better with the daily stress and strain of life. Engaging in a daily practice can be done in as little as 5-10 minutes a day.

There are many health benefits to meditation from relaxation to lowering the blood pressure to decreasing muscle tension.

Meditation can help you calm and sooth your nerves, lower your heart rate and even help with things like weight loss or business success. Meditation can also help boost your mood and provide you immense peace and contentment.

Meditation helps your body release powerful endorphins, which are your brains natural feel good chemicals.

Health Benefits to a Regular Meditative Practice

• Can increase blood flow and slow the heart rate.
• Decreases muscle tension.
• Can help with post-operative healing.
• Enhances energy.
• Helps relax the nervous system.
• Helps with weight loss.
• Great for lowering blood pressure.
• Can help relieve headaches.
• Helps boost self-confidence and self-esteem.
• Helps you control your thoughts.
• Can enhance creativity and imagination.
• Can help you develop your intuition.
• Can help you solve complex problems better.
• Can help you boost your attitude.
• Provides peace of mind and greater happiness.
• Can help you bring the body, mind and spirit into alignment.
• Can help you learn to be present in the moment.
• Releases endorphins your brain's natural feel-good chemical.
• Can help you to be more successful.

That last benefit is probably the most surprising one if you are new to meditation. Many companies are jumping on the meditation bandwagon and encouraging their employees to engage in a regular meditative practice.

Google has even offered meditation and mindfulness classes to their employees, and the program has been immensely successful.

Padmaseree Warrior, the CTO of Cisco Systems meditates every night and she also spends her Saturday nights doing what she calls a digital detox, which is a great idea. She uses meditation to reboot her brain and soul and proclaims that she feels much calmer after her meditation practice.

Now that you know the secret that helps these outrageously successful people do what they do - you might want to make a daily meditative practice a part of your day.

References: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/05/business-...
Reprinted with permission from www.TheZenDiaries.com