9 executives who practise meditation

Many studies have attested to the power of meditation. It’s a practice that helps protect the brain from ageing, rivals antidepressants for tackling anxiety and depression, improves attention and concentration and can even help fight addiction.

Moreover, leaders turn to meditation to help them focus, keep calm and make better decisions. These nine executives are all converts to the calming art.

1. Marc Benioff – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Salesforce

In a 2005 San Francisco Chronicle article, Marc Benioff discussed his long-term relationship with meditation.

There is no medication better than meditation. @ariannahuff

— Marc Benioff (@Benioff) June 14, 2014

  2. Arianna Huffington – President and Editor-in-Chief, the Huffington Post Media Group

Arianna offers weekly classes for AOL and Huffington Post employees. She describes her early morning yoga and meditation as two of her “joy triggers” in a 2011 Vogue article. She wrote recently on a blog: 3.  Bill George – Senior Fellow, Harvard Business School

Bill George told Bloomberg News that he uses meditation to recharge during travels.

With #meditation and taking time for yourself, you can keep oriented towards your #TrueNorth: http://t.co/Bg2i30KgOc pic.twitter.com/XRpHAwxfJ4 — Bill George (@Bill_George) July 29, 2015

4.  Padmasree Warrior – CTO and Strategy Officer, Cisco Systems

Padmasree Warrior spends her Saturdays doing a “digital detox” and meditates every night. She told the New York Times in 2012 that meditation helps her manage all aspects of her professional life:  5. Rick Goings – Chairman and CEO, Tupperware Brands Corporation

Rick Goings aims to meditate for at least 20 minutes every afternoon, according to the Financial Times.    6. Larry Brilliant – President, Skoll Global Threats Fund

The former director of Google.org, lived in a Himalayan ashram for two years practising meditation. In his 2013 commencement address, he discussed how his guru inspired him to join the World Health Organization.

Meditation increases creativity, mindfulness and compassion. It isn’t just Buddha’s words it’s now the NY Times! http://t.co/TkxRuIaCDi — Larry Brilliant (@larrybrilliant) July 6, 2013

7. Ray Dalio – Chairman and Chief Investment Officer, Bridgewater Associates

In an interview, Ray Dalio talks about how meditation is crucial in his life and how it helped him reach success.  8. Nouriel Roubini – Professor of Economics and International Business, Leonard N. Stern School of Business, New York University

Economist Nouriel Roubini revealed on Twitter his new practice, transcendental meditation, during the Annual Meeting in Davos.

With Matthieu Ricard, tibetan monk who runs a meditation class at the WEF in Davos. I started TM last week pic.twitter.com/4gJJSAQLX9 — Nouriel Roubini (@Nouriel) January 22, 2014

9. Rupert Murdoch – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Fox Entertainment Group, US

News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch is another executive who shared his interest on transcendental meditation on Twitter:

Trying to learn transcendental meditation. Everyone recommends, not that easy to get started, but said to improve everything! — Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) April 21, 2013

Want to know more about the science behind mindfulness meditation? Watch Richard J. Davidson, Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and Thomas Insel, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), as they discuss the impact of meditation on the brain, in this video filmed at the Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos earlier this year.

Have you read:
Podcast: Mindfulness at Davos 2015
4 ways to be more productive at work and in life
Could mind-body medicine cut healthcare costs?
Speeding down: the slow living revolution
What science tells us about the pursuit of happiness

Author: José Santiago, Digital Content Specialist, Public Engagement, World Economic Forum

Image: Captured during the session Mindfulness Meditation in the congress centre at the Annual Meeting 2015 of the World Economic Forum in Davos, January 21, 2015.