It’s hard to get away from the buzz of the city when you live in the city. Even when going for a quiet stroll in Highbury Fields you can’t escape the noise from the traffic going by.
But Andy Hix, the founder of Zen@Work, believes that it is more important now than ever to make time to switch off.
“People are crying out for a way out of their stressed, frantic, anxious lifestyles,” he says.
“I think it’s got a lot to do with feeling overwhelmed by how much information you have to deal with. Things like social media, smartphones.”
Andy started meditating because a friend recommended it, but he says that he didn’t realise just how beneficial it would be.
“I started feeling much calmer. It made me feel more in tune with my body; what was good for it and what I needed to cut out. Things like changing my diet.”
Now he runs Mindful Mondays at Impact Hub Islington, a shared office space and network in Angel.
The one-hour session includes meditation, followed by a group discussion. “People find it really helpful to know that it’s not just them that feels anxiety or stress,” he says. “Hearing from people in a group discussion format is very comforting.”
He adds that it is important that lunch is scheduled as part of the session. “I see many people eating their sandwich while checking their email. I take people away from their desks”.
Employers are now increasingly seeing the benefits of mindfulness. Companies like Google have introduced classes for staff, while Andy has ran workshops for the likes of Teach First and the Department of Energy and Climate Change.
He says it is hugely rewarding to see the difference that mindfulness can make. “It has made them more able to focus, and generally deal with stress and anxiety more effectively. At the end of the session, they feel rejuvenated, calm, more in control.”
Mindfulness may have been around for more than 2,000 years, Andy says, but it is only now that Londoners are really reaping in the benefits.
