267: Why Stressed Professionals Quit Meditation (And How Not To)

Introducing Mountain to Molehill: A Mindfulness and Meditation Newsletter

Mental Health Melissa Llarena

Why Stressed Professionals Quit Meditation (And How Not To)

Meditating is a good alternative to that third glass of wine at night – and might even serve as a replacement for psych meds for the most restless, stressed-out marketers, sales professionals, and ad executives dealing with the unpredictability of their virtual lives, workplace, home life, and everything else that gets logged in your head as stressful mountains to climb when in reality you're looking at a molehill you can simply hop over.

Q: Why did I write this article encouraging you to return to meditation instead of relying on quicker fixes for stress?

A: I know firsthand how psych meds play out. I've been an unwitting observer of a personal longitudinal study as the daughter of a mom who has been on them since 1982. My thinking is simple: if you can avoid them, do. I don't say this as a psychiatrist – I say it as a witness who has watched decades of science experiments performed on my single parent, from my toddler years through today, when the impact of this four-decade-long chemical warfare is irreversible.

This deeply personal experience is why I'm committed to my mental health, and why I believe adopting and keeping a meditation practice is a powerful approach to life's realities. A consistent practice will increase your capacity to bear any weight you may be carrying – something we all need, don't you agree?

Now, I know it's hard to adopt a practice from scratch, so I decided to focus on those of you who once meditated and might secretly wish to return. Let's start with the top reasons for this kind of "quiet" quitting. Notice the pun? I'll try to keep you chuckling throughout this read. But first, let's look at some serious stats...

According to the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, approximately 60% of people who start a meditation practice discontinue within the first year. The primary reasons include:

1.     Perceived lack of time

2.     Difficulty maintaining consistent practice

3.     Feeling they're "not doing it right"

4.     Not seeing immediate results

Let's explore doable workarounds for these four reasons, considering our modern omnichannel lives. Interestingly, this study aligns perfectly with a recent LinkedIn survey I conducted, asking mid-career professionals what they wanted me to cover. Time emerged as the top concern, so let's start there.

Perceived Lack of Time

Let's talk about time – or the common excuse of not having enough of it. Let's dispel the idea that you're too busy to drop in and pay attention to your breath for five minutes a day. Where can you steal these five minutes? Let's start with the low-hanging fruit. According to the Harvard Business Review, professionals spend an average of 28% of their workweek managing email. That's about 3.1 hours per day reading, writing, and responding to emails, with an estimated 25% of those being unnecessary or unproductive.

Take my librarian email saga, for example. I received a ridiculously long email about a book renewal that could have been summarized in three se