Increasing the Quality of Mind-State for Higher Performance

Your state of mind plays a big role in the way you perceive your experiences. Sometimes, viewing something as exciting rather than stressful can be the difference between a positive and negative experience. Similarly, perceiving a situation as frightening rather than adventurous could cause fear over enjoyment.

How do you control your mind-state and your perception of the world around you? When so many reactions and emotions are preprogrammed from childhood, it can be difficult to break free from this cycle of allowing external elements to affect internal life.

One of the solutions, which has shown promise in increasing the quality of mind-state, is meditation. Meditation allows you to be present in the moment, feel your emotions more honestly, and perform at your peak state. Throughout this article, we’ll more closely examine what peak state means and how you can achieve it.

What is Peak State and How Does Meditation Help?

The peak state is the highest level of mindfulness and acceptance one can obtain. It surpasses emotions, stress, and negative thoughts to allow healing, peace, and eventually, a sense of being at your best. Peak state is reached through visualization, intrinsic motivation, and meditation.

Meditation is a tool that has been proven useful in many facets of life. Using meditation to reach your peak state allows you to better understand your true wants and needs, and ignore those standards set out by social norms. According to The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, there’s a link between meditation and improved self-esteem. The publication used two studies to determine the effects of meditation on self-worth and found that those who meditated were more prepared to rely on intuition and trust themselves in decision-making processes, which led to a higher level of self-worth.

Sample Exercise for Peak State Meditation

Peak state isn’t something to be reached overnight. It takes many steps, including being able to visualize your desires for the future. Below, we’ll examine two exercises you can try at home to bring yourself closer to your peak state.

Peak Life Moment Visualization

Have you ever experienced a feeling so exhilarating and empowering that you wanted to hold onto it forever? These moments are fleeting, but the imprints that they leave on our memories are lasting. Bring to mind a peak life moment when you felt so ecstatic to be alive. Maybe you won an award at work, maybe it was the first time you kissed your spouse, or maybe it was reaching a personal goal. Whatever the feeling, imagine it and play it like a movie in your thoughts. Don’t just watch yourself on the screen of your mind, be one with yourself as you replay the moment. Feel the sun on your skin, the breath in your lungs, and the pure joy as you reach your goal.

Meditation Exercise

Now, we’re going to move on to a meditation technique that you can use to achieve a peak state. Find a quiet, comfortable space, and follow these steps:

1. Sit down and gently close your eyes.
2. Take a few deep breaths and focus on the way the air passes over your lips and into your lungs. Exhale and imagine the air rushing from your lungs and re-entering the atmosphere around you.
3. See yourself in your mind’s eye with your eyes closed, breathing in and breathing out, breathing in and breathing out. Feel your body as it inhales and exhales.
4. Recall your peak life moment from the earlier exercise. Focus on that moment and how you were feeling. Hold the moment in your mind, that moment when you felt fully alive.
5. Again, slip into the moment, feel yourself enter the body of a younger you in that moment.
6. Consider how you feel. Stop and look at the people around you, the place you stand, and focus on the glowing center of joy in your heart. The way your body is reacting to the moment.
7. Try to determine what you’re feeling. Is it happiness? Is it excitement? Is it love? Is it peace? Is it more than one feeling?
8. Feel the energy in your body at this moment. As that emotion is taking over, feel the energy fill you up. What color is it? Is it more than one color?
9. Now imagine that this feeling, this energy, and this color are with you always. If it were always present, what could you achieve? How would it change your life?
10. Consider how this energy could be used in your relationships and how it could change your future.
11. Take a few more breaths, focusing on each one before opening your eyes.

If you want to experience more of these exercises and perform at your highest potential, consider our Ascenting Relationship and Wellbeing Program.