Unconscious (and captive) directors and non-actors of our minds

6.200. This is the number of thoughts that, according to the most recent studies conducted through functional magnetic resonance imaging by psychologists at Queen’s University (Canada), a person would have on average per day.
A real crowding in our heads, no doubt about it.

Previous research had arrived at even higher numbers (72,000), but the substance of this empirical evidence does not change.
Each of us generates many thousands of thoughts a day, in the form of images, internal dialogues, memories, words, and cognitive fragments scattered in our brains that we do not control in most cases, and that we often suffer unconsciously. Sometimes they make us feel bad, sometimes good. Sometimes they just leave us with a lot of confusion and disorientation.
And at the same time, we cannot find focus on the things that are important to us.

It is normal, moreover, that in the age of information abundance in which we live, all this “chattering” of the mind is further amplified. In most cases we find ourselves reacting impulsively to stimuli generated by our minds regardless of our intentions. The internal stimuli add up and get mixed up with the hundreds of external stimuli by which we are inundated: work interactions, social media, corporate chats, personal chats, e-mails, the Web, etc….

Meditation as a daily practice to regain clarity and serenity

The quality of our professional and personal lives is related to our ability to govern our minds. We cannot change absolutely anything that happens around us. Neither is it about what goes on in our minds. We can only act on how we react to internal and external stimuli. We can increase the level of awareness toward our mental processes, and we can learn to observe what is happening in a neutral way, to decide from time to time what is the right move to make.

At first, I was having a huge struggle, even just standing still for two minutes to “do nothing.” As soon as I closed my eyes dozens of thoughts would come up for attention. The funny thing is that often you don’t even realize you have all those thoughts in your head until you get some silence.

It is amazing to observe oneself. With practice the minutes increased and with them also the ability to observe my thoughts with detachment and let them go. You realize that your thoughts are part of you, but they are not you. It is you who can decide what to do with it. And meditative practice is valuable training in this regard. I am not an ascetic and will never become a Shaolin monk like my very dear friend and teacher Alberto Bertolotti who taught me so much in this area (italian version with subtitles).

All I need is a chair, ten to fifteen minutes of time, a quiet room, a garden or any place with a little privacy, and that’s it. I close my eyes and begin with breathing exercises and then sink into a wonderful state of inner calm. Every night this represents the appointment with myself before going to bed. In particularly intense periods I add a session to the wake-up call to get off on the right foot. As needed, 2-3 minutes in the office during the workday is enough to re-establish connection, clarity and awareness.

The benefits are many. In the very moment and immediately after meditating I feel better, more lucid, relaxed and energetic. During the rest of the day I experience the induced effects due to improved ability to listen and observe my thoughts and related emotions.