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It's a Win-Win: Top Achievers on Not Conceding Life
by Anita Warner

Transcendental Meditation for Women Professionals Translate This Article
21 August 2015

There doesn't have to be a trade-off between performance and actually tapping into a place of peace, strength and wisdom within. — Arianna Huffington.

Everyone is so exhausted these days. And yet many women I know are so stressed that they need to use some kind of aid just to sleep.

Although technological developments unfolding over the last decades have made some aspects of life easier, they have also been accompanied by a global awareness and global competition that have made it necessary for everyone, especially women, to work harder and achieve more just to stay in the workplace. The stress that this causes is one of the main reasons why so many of us continue to find a work-life balance elusive.

I had been practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique for many years when I worked on Wall Street—working in what had been, and still is to a great extent, a very male dominated field, [which] had its challenges. Not only did women have the challenge of trying to be taken seriously, but they also had the incredible pressure of performance that that field demands. Luckily I had TM. While many of my associates developed hypertension, alcohol problems, depression, anxiety and worse, I was able to maintain a steady balanced state of well-being naturally, giving me a strong foundation for achievement. My experience was that 'tapping into a place of peace, strength and wisdom within' was not just a compatible occurrence but actually served as a strong foundation for 'performance.'

Recently, Arianna Huffington began to tour the world, speaking about living ''the lives we want, not just the lives we settle for'' and to moving ''beyond burnout, sleep deprivation, and driving ourselves into the ground.''

When I heard Ms. Huffington speak, I knew from my own experience what she was talking about, having had that metric integrated into my life for many years. Although this concept is not new and Transcendental Meditation has been available for over 50 years, it is always inspiring to read the remarks and endorsements of top professionals when they ''discover'' that with TM in their routine they have the ability to stay calm, rested and healthy while they advance their careers and achieve their goals.

Here are some of my favorite—and some of the most illustrative—statements about their experience with Transcendental Meditation:

You really look forward to TM. It's your oasis. It's your life preserver. — Patricia Harrison, CEO, Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Anxiety has always been a constant issue for me and meditation acts as a guard, a sedative, a powerful antidote to darkness, anger and unproductive thinking. — Lena Dunham, Emmy award-winning filmmaker, writer, actress.

Doing TM for 40 minutes each day gives us the calm and focus we need to deal with our crazy, busy, hectic lives. TM has changed the pace of my life and given me incredible focus and a sense of well-being. — Lesley Seymour, Editor-in-Chief, More Magazine.

Transcendental Meditation has empowered me in all aspects of my life. I make more conscious decisions with a deeper perspective and more balanced approach. It has enhanced my natural strengths and improved areas of weakness. — Rehana Farrell, CAO at Guggenheim Partners.

The reason that the TM program can help create all these benefits in a woman's life is that it reduces stress by providing exceptionally deep rest for 20 minutes twice each day while it creates integration of brain functioning, enlivening the prefrontal cortex—the CEO of the brain.

Hundreds of peer reviewed studies show that many other measurable changes take place in the body and mind during the technique, including reduction of hormones related to stress and anxiety.

Belief, faith, and intellectual understanding of the principles and effects of TM are not needed to enjoy the benefits. The technique is mechanical and effortless and works from the start.

When I have the opportunity—and this is a golden one—to discuss this with my peers, I always gently remind them that career success and living a good life need not be traded off. It's that simple.

About the author

Anita Warner is a retired Vice President, Institutional Fixed Income Sales on Wall Street

Copyright © 2015 Transcendental Meditation for Women Professionals

See related articles:
∙ Buffering against stress by enlivening the prefrontal cortex—'CEO of the brain'—through Transcendental Meditation
∙ Remaining collected and focused amidst the chaos and pressure of the work environment: Retired Wall Street exec credits Transcendental Meditation

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