Google's Life-Changing Mindfulness Course - Business Insider

By branding meditation as a workout for your emotional intelligence, Meng was able to angle Search Inside Yourself as a contemplative training ... 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H M S Inthenews Closeicon Twocrossedlinesthatforman'X'.Itindicatesawaytocloseaninteraction,ordismissanotification. Chevronicon Itindicatesanexpandablesectionormenu,orsometimesprevious/nextnavigationoptions. HOMEPAGE 0 Newsletters Accounticon Aniconintheshapeofaperson'sheadandshoulders.Itoftenindicatesauserprofile. Login Subscribe Subscribe Home Chevronicon Itindicatesanexpandablesectionormenu,orsometimesprevious/nextnavigationoptions. Strategy Here'sWhatGoogleTeachesEmployeesInIts'SearchInsideYourself'Course DrakeBaer 2014-08-05T19:59:06Z SaveArticleIcon Abookmark FacebookIcon TheletterF. Emailicon Anenvelope.Itindicatestheabilitytosendanemail. Shareicon Ancurvedarrowpointingright. Twittericon Astylizedbirdwithanopenmouth,tweeting. Twitter LinkedInicon Theword"in". LinkedIn Fliboardicon AstylizedletterF. Flipboard Linkicon Animageofachainlink.Itsymobilizesawebsitelinkurl. CopyLink Downloadtheapp AdamBerry/GettyImages Everyyear,thousandsofGooglerstakeoneofadozencompanycourseson mindfulness meditation ,theincreasinglyprevalentpracticeofhavinga"balancedawareness"ofwhat'shappeningaroundyou. Themostpopularclass—titled"SearchInsideYourself"—regularlyhasawaitliststretchingsixmonths.  "Iknowthissoundsmelodramatic,"aGoogleemployeereportedonanafter-courseexamination,"butIreallythinkthiscoursechangedmylife."TheclasshasbeentaughtatGooglesince2007andcanbetakenas eitheratwo-and-a-half-dayintensivecourseorin19hoursoversevenweeklysessions. It'sthebrainchildofChadeMeng-Tan,aSingapore-bornengineerwhowashiredasGoogleemployeeNo.107backin1999.Meng(ashe'sknowntohiscolleagues)hasmadesignificantcontributionstothecompany,includingrampingupitsChineselanguagecompatibility.Menghasalso influencedGoogle'sculture.He'sfamousinthecompanyforhostingVIPsthatgracetheGoogleplex;hereportedlyhasawallofhimselfsmilingwithcelebrities,includingpresidentsClinton,Carter,andObama.  "I'mnotinterestedinbringingBuddhismtoGoogle,"Meng hassaid."IaminterestedinhelpingpeopleatGooglefindthekeytohappiness."That'sthescopeofMeng'sambition. Hisjobdescriptionreads: "Enlightenminds,openhearts,createworldpeace." MengtriedtolaunchmeditationcoursesatGooglebeforetheSearchInsideYourselfclass,butcouldn'tfindtherightpositioning—untilhealigneditwithanothermovementinorganizationalpsychology:emotionalintelligence."ThepeopleIwantedtoreachwerethosewhomightlookatthecoursedescriptionandsay,'Thisisallhippiebullshit,'"Menghassaid.  Bybrandingmeditationasaworkoutforyouremotionalintelligence,MengwasabletoangleSearchInsideYourselfasacontemplativetrainingprogramthatwouldhelppeoplebetterrelatetothemselvesandothers,thusprovidingadifferentiatingsetofskillsinengineer-heavycultureslikeGoogle. "EverybodyknowsthisEIthingisgoodfortheircareer,"MengtoldWIRED."AndeverycompanyknowsthatiftheirpeoplehaveEI,they'regonnamakeashitloadofmoney."  Thecourse—whichgotashoutoutinaNewYorkTimescolumnlastweek—isfastbecominganinstitutioninandoutsideoftheGoogleplex.In2012, Mengpublished abook basedonthecourse,called"SearchInsideYourself:TheUnexpectedPathtoAchievingSuccess,Happiness(andWorldPeace)." It'sgoneontobeabestseller,receiveheapsofawards,and isbeingtranslatedinto24languages. Asacourse,SearchInsideYourselfisbrokenintothreeportions: • Attentiontraining:"Atanytime,whateverishappeningtoyou—whetheryou'reunderstress,you'rebeingshoutedat,oranythingelse—youhavetheskilltobringthemindtoaplacethat'scalmandclear.Ifyoucandothat,itlaysthefoundationforemotionalintelligence,"Mengsays.• Self-knowledge:"Onceyourmindiscalmandclear,youcancreateaqualityofself-knowledgeorself-awarenessthatimprovesovertime,anditevolvesintoself-mastery.Youknowaboutyourselfenoughthatyoucanmasteryouremotions," Meng says.• Creatingmentalhabits:"Forexample,thereisthementalhabitofkindness,oflookingateveryhumanbeingyouencounterandthinkingtoyourself,'Iwantthispersontobehappy.'Oncethatbecomesahabit,youdon'thavetothinkaboutit;itjustcomesnaturally," Meng says.AccordingtoaGooglespokesperson,theclassiseffectivebecauseofthewayittiesneurosciencetothefirst-personresearchthatmeditatorshavebeendoingforsome2,500years.  Whileinstructorschange,there'salwaystwoofthem.Onesuppliesthescientificresearch,andtheothergivespracticalinstructions.Thescience-orientedinstructor focusesonwhat'shappeninginyourbrainwhenyousitonameditationcushionorwalkthroughyourlife,explaininghowswirlingthoughtsconnectwiththefight-or-flighthormonalimpulseshandeddownfromevolution.Thepracticaltraininginmindfulnessteachesthebasicsofmeditation. Theword"Buddhism"isneverused.Duringthecourse,aninstructormightaskyouandanotherGooglertopairoffandsitacrossfromoneanother.She'llthentellyouthatthepersonsittingacrossfromyouisaperson,hasamotherandfather,fearsandhopes,andhasexperiencedpain.It'saworkoutincompassion—recognizingthatyourcolleaguesarehumanbeingsasopposedtocogsinacolorfulcorporatemachine.Theresultsarepowerful.JustlookatafewofthetestimonialsoftheGooglerswhohavedecidedtoSearchInsideThemselves,viaMindful.org:Oneparticipantsaid,"IhavecompletelychangedinthewayIreacttostressors.Itakethetimetothinkthroughthingsandempathizewithotherpeople’ssituationsbeforejumpingtoconclusions.Ilovethenewme!" Somehavefoundthequalityoftheirmarriagesimproved. OthersreportedovercomingpersonalcriseswiththehelpofSearchInsideYourself.Forexample,onepersontoldus,"Iexperiencedpersonaltragedy—mybrother’sdeath—duringthecourseof SearchInsideYourself,and[theclass]enabledmetomanagemygriefinapositiveway."Onepersonsimplysaid,"Inowseemyselfandtheworldthroughakinder,moreunderstandingsetofeyes." SignupfornotificationsfromInsider!Stayuptodatewithwhatyouwanttoknow. Subscribetopushnotifications Dealicon Aniconintheshapeofalightningbolt. Keepreading Newsletter Getadailyselectionofourtopstoriesbasedonyourreadingpreferences. Loading Somethingisloading. Emailaddress Byclicking‘Signup’,youagreetoreceivemarketingemailsfromInsider aswellasotherpartneroffersandacceptour TermsofServiceand PrivacyPolicy. SEEALSO: 12WaysToBeHappierAtWorkInLessThan10Minutes More: Google Meditation EmotionalIntelligence Mindfulness Search Chevronicon Itindicatesanexpandablesectionormenu,orsometimesprevious/nextnavigationoptions. 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