Let’s get this out of the way first: I know LinkedIn is full of this kind of stuff, such as “What My 3-year-old Stepdaughter Taught Me About Client Management” or “How My Pet Chinchilla Made Me a More Effective CEO.” These sorts of observations can get very cheesy very quickly.
That said, I do meditate most mornings, and it’s had a very beneficial effect on working in this crazy industry. It’s given me a bit of balance, a little more focus, a solid dose of humility and some tools that help make the worst days roll off my back.
After kicking it around in my brain a little, I realized the basic tenets of meditation can be applied to a lot of Life Stuff, and our work is no exception. So, take this with a few grains of salt, but these three basic tenets help me write briefs and presos, and maybe they’ll help you too.
Let go of distractions
In meditation, it’s so easy to lose sight of focusing on your breath, and instead fixate on that shitty thing a coworker said to you, or your sore back or the pile of dirty dishes in the sink. These little details don’t matter. They don’t need your attention. Let ‘em go, as hard as that is to do.