Got an important meeting to attend?
A presentation?
A training session?
To get more out of it, and in the case of studying perhaps obtain a higher grade, you might do well to spend time first practising some from of meditation.
Researchers from the University of Illinois have revealed how freshmen in particular benefit significantly from undertaking a short meditation practice prior to attending a lecture, that they were quizzed on afterwards. The practice was just six minutes of written meditation exercise.
Those students who did the meditation scored better on the quiz, than those who didn’t and in one experiment the meditation even predicted which students passed, and which failed.
The lead Professor Youmans discussed his belief that the meditation practice provides the opportunity for self reflection, enhancing focus, mental clarity and self discipline.
Mindfulness meditation has been shown to be effective for this and stress reduction, but of course other forms of meditative practice such as yoga, tai chi and Pilates have also been shown to be work. As has undertaking some form of exercise or finding a quiet place for prayer.
Taking the time out of our day on a regular basis, to pause and think about where you are, what you are doing and what you want to achieve appears to help us achieve improved performance, whether it be at college or at work.
Jared T. Ramsburg, Robert J. Youmans. Meditation in the Higher-Education Classroom: Meditation Training Improves Student Knowledge Retention during Lectures. Mindfulness, 2013; DOI: 10.1007/s12671-013-0199-5
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