Yoga at the Office: My Routine for Staying Focused in Meetings

Think back to the last meeting you attended (at the office, with your building manager, at a school board meeting, etc.): did you notice participants who were restless, distracted, or tapping away on their cell phones while pretending to listen? Have you ever sat through a sleep-inducing presentation with slides that were too long or too cluttered, straining your eyes? Have you noticed the discussion getting lost in a maze of details at the expense of the agenda, with no decisions being made? Or that it turned into a showdown between two sides?

Yes, “meeting overload” is wreaking havoc in companies—and elsewhere! Pointless, drawn-out discussions; participants who are distracted, tense, or tired: only 52% of meetings are considered productive. An employee spends three weeks a year in meetings; a manager, twice that! It’s difficult to simply do away with meetings altogether, but we can help transform this necessary evil into a productive exercise and share group techniques with other colleagues that will improve productivity, create a positive atmosphere, and facilitate decision-making.

To achieve this productive result, you can’t just leave your body behind! With the routine suggested here, you’ll prepare yourself to be in a better frame of mind—patient and focused—thanks to breathing exercises that will sharpen your mind. But you’ll also release tension in your body, allowing you to sit for long periods and preventing that tension from affecting your performance.

Ideally, you should suggest to the other meeting participants that you start the meeting with one or two exercises from this routine, and then take a Yogist break every thirty minutes to re-energize the group. These practices are becoming increasingly common in some countries, such as the United States. Discreet and simple, these breaks are done while seated. They can radically change the atmosphere of the discussion and help everyone step back to focus on what really matters. Your colleagues will thank you!

It’s not easy to have a constructive discussion when your neck hurts. Release the tension in your neck when you’re feeling tense before a meeting… or during it, with the other participants!

Sit down in your chair with your back straight. Rest your hands flat on your knees or on the table in front of you. Imagine that the tip of your nose is the tip of a pencil, and use it to trace the numbers 1 through 9 in front of you.

Breathe in through your nose and trace the diagonal line of the number 1 with your nose, lifting your head first toward a point to your left, then upward and to the right, and expanding the movement to engage the full range of motion in your neck. Breathe out through your nose and trace the vertical line of the number 1 downward, lowering your chin toward your chest.

Do the same for all the numbers, maintaining the same deep, slow breathing, and taking your time up to 9.

If your hands get tired from taking notes, give your fingers a break to help them regain their dexterity.

Sitting in your chair, rest your elbows on the table in front of you or on your knees, and look at your open hands. Inhale and bring your right thumb and index finger together; then bring your left thumb and index finger together. Exhale and press your thumbs against your index fingers for 3 seconds before releasing the pressure.

Then move on to the next finger: place your thumbs against your middle fingers as you inhale, and press firmly for 3 seconds as you exhale.

Work on each finger in the same way and at the same pace, one after the other.

Once you reach your little finger, you can start the whole cycle over by pressing each finger against your thumb, one after the other, for just one second, while breathing more quickly.

YOGIST helps your employees stay focused to make meetings more productive
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