Basketball legend Phil Jackson began studying Zen
meditation in 1973, and went on to coach his players
in the ways of mindfulness. That same year, quirky
film director David Lynch took up Transcendental
Meditation, and by his own accounting hasn’t
missed a day of practice since. Steve Jobs came out
of the closet as a meditator in 1981, just after Apple
stock went public. Pop star Katy Perry, who was
named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 2013,
told Elle magazine she caught the meditation bug
from her former husband, comedian Russell Brand.
Mindfulness is fast becoming a cause célèbre at
Fortune 100 companies as well: Google, Intel, and
Target all have created custom, in-house meditation
and wellness programs for their employees.
Some forward-thinking organizations are building
mindfulness into meetings and education programs
— and their efforts aren’t about creating moments of
Zen. Mindful awareness can improve brain function,
raise emotional intelligence, and even heighten our
ability to absorb and retain information. In other
words, it can help your attendees help themselves.
From the C-suite to the celebrity
interview, mindfulness is
everywhere. It’s even starting
to center itself at meetings and
conferences. Here’s why — and
what it can do for your attendees.
By Kate Mulcrone
Illustrations by Irene Rinaldi
in the moment
