“By far the most difficult skill I learned as CEO was the ability to manage my own psychology…Over the years I’ve spoken to hundreds of CEOs, all with the same experience.” – Ben Horowitz, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz

Today, mindfulness and meditation are commonly promoted and practiced by everyone from Rupert Murdoch to Arianna Huffington and Jerry Seinfeld. In addition, some of the world’s largest and most recognizable brands have implemented corporate mindfulness and meditation programs with incredible results. A short list of companies includes Google, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, eBay, Intel, Nike, LinkedIn and General Mills.

Companies that encourage mindfulness report a reduction in absenteeism, an increase in productivity and improvement in business. One large Australian telecom company that had lost 9% of its customers after industry deregulation found that a meditation program helped to stem the company’s loss of customers and saved it US$20 million.

There is a lot to read on mindfulness and meditation, and it can be daunting to know where to look. I have compiled a list of excellent articles to help learn more about the myriad benefits of mindfulness and meditation for corporate and personal well-being:

• How Mindfulness Improves Executive Coaching by the Harvard Business Review
• Powering Up Productivity With Mindfulness by IndustryWeek
• The Best Place To Meditate? At work. by CNN
• Why Mindful Individuals Make Better Decisions by INSEAD Knowledge
• In Silicon Valley, Meditation Is No Fad by Wired.com
• The Mindful Workspace by Jonathan Rosenfeld at Medium.com
• To Make a Killing on Wall Street, Start Meditating by Bloomberg Business
• Can Mindful Managers Make Happier Employees? by Hooria Jazaieri
• Cultivating Leadership Presence Through Mindfulness by General Mills
• Developing Mindful Leaders for the C-Suite by the Harvard Business Review
• Intel To Launch Mindfulness Program from mindful.org
• Knowledge Worker Productivity and Self-Management by Dr. Jeremy Hunter
• Mindfulness At Work by Dr. Ron Cacioppe
• Neuroscience of Mindfulness by Dr. Michael Baime
• O.K., Google, Take a Deep Breath by the New York Times
• Resilience Through Mindful Leadership by Bill George, Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School
• Search Inside Yourself by Chade-Meng Tan (Google)
• There Is No Price Tag On a Clear Mind by The Guardian
• Three Keys To Mindful Leadership Coaching by Douglas Riddle
• What Does Mindfulness Meditation Do To Your Brain? by Scientific American
• Why Become a Mindful Leader? by Staffan Rydin

For a more in-depth look at mindfulness and meditation, check out my Bookshelf and Video Library.

NOTE: Mindfulness and meditation practice is not for everybody and should never be forced on to an individual. This excellent article speaks about some of the potential risks or negative effects of a mindfulness training experience:

• Is Mindfulness Making Us Ill? by the Guardian

“Focus, clarity, creativity, compassion, and courage. These are the qualities of the mindful leaders I have worked with, taught, mentored, and interviewed.” – Bill George, professor of management practice at Harvard Business School and former chair and CEO of Medtronic