As Seen On: Background About Me Mastery Of Meditation Certified Teacher, Member of Quantum Success Coaching Academy Accredited by ACTO, CCE, AIOBP (USA)
Table of Contents Page Number 1. Who Am I? 2 1.1 A bit about me 2 1.2 How I became a meditation teacher 3 1.3 Why meditation? 6 1.3 Mission 6 1.4 Vision 7 1.5 Objectives 7 2. What I offer 8
Most people live in a state of waking stress. Half the time you don t even know what s upsetting you, why you feel so drained, frustrated and tired all the time. Well my name s Melissa Mukaiwa, I m a mindfulness, meditation & life coach and I d love to help you with that! :) I often think back to people and things that caused my life to change drastically, and Melissa you are one of the few people for whom this is true. I could not have made it to where I am now were it not for you Aaron Simmonds Former Student at St George s College, now in Scotland fulfilling his dream of becoming a doctor. 1
1. Who Am I? My name is Melissa Mukaiwa, and I m the founder & CEO of The Arena Cc. The Arena is a vision 2030 orientated enterprise founded in 2015 under the Close Corporation Act. The firm is committed to disrupting innovation and education in Namibia by helping individuals recognize and then realize their peak capacity. A series of projects are set to roll out in the next 36 months, in the meantime my role is to expose people to the concepts and ideas that will make sure that future participants receive the maximum benefit. 1.1 More About Me Though a copywriter by trade, I m first and foremost a humanist. I believe that people have unlimited potential to meet and solve all of societies major issues. I believe that we can achieve this by learning how to tap into more profound levels of creative innovation and mental-emotional stability. And I believe that the best way to do this is to become intimately aware of the ways in which we learn, think and grow. 2
My personal contribution begins by educating people on one of the most disruptive internal technologies on the planet meditation. 1.2 How did I become a meditation teacher. I never wanted to be a meditation teacher. In fact, if you tried to tell me that one day I d be turning down corporates to spend hours doing nothing, I would have told you to put down whatever it was that you were so obviously smoking. And yet here I am The full story would take some going into but the long and short of it is that I became a meditation teacher because I recognised how my inability to let go of things was having a very real and detrimental impact on my capacity to function at my best. It s been scientifically proven how things like past conflicts, arguments at work, guilt, mistakes, and probably every other life-sucking emotion you could think of have incredibly detrimental effects on our lives, and it was from one such downward spiral, that I took the leap. 3
See back then my background was in digital marketing and business, so trying to get a logical thinker like me to meditate wasn t the easiest, but eventually I saw things moving. Fast forward a few months, and I m living in a forest monastery (snakes and all) where I learned to meditate from one of the most revered monks in Thailand, Phra Luangtha. We d meditate for 10, 12 sometimes 15 hours a day, and what started as a three day experiment stretched out to almost a month. In that time I had some amazing experiences which made me realise that everything science says about meditation is true. It really does: Radically reduce stress and anxiety Combat depression Create inner peace Better sleep quality and rhythms Lower your blood pressure Beneficially alter your brain structure (it physically changes in as little as 8 weeks) Naturally increase empathy and perspective which betters your relationships Heighten intuition and "gut feelings" Provide access to higher brain wave frequencies associated with better learning (higher states of consciousness) Naturally encourage better lifestyle choices - eg. exercise, better diet, giving up smoking etc 4
After that initial period, I remained in Asia for 6 months more to deepen my practice, and in this time everything from my eating habits to my relationships changed. This happened not because I was trying to be healthy or do the right thing, but because once I d cultivated clarity on the inside, I could no longer tolerate toxicity on the outside. Things that were bad for me just stopped feeling good to me and so changing my lifestyle was really quite easy to do. I realised from first-hand experience just how disruptive a strong meditation practice could be About two years later I completed my meditation teacher certification, and then joined a coaching academy in order to reach more people in more effective ways. Meditation changed my life and if you can make it over that initial learning curve, it s my sincere promise that it will change your life too. Stillness is the space where all creative expression, peace, light, and love come to be.only from that space can you create your best work and your best life. Oprah Winfrey 5
1.2 Why meditation? We live in a stimulant saturated society. Whether it s through deadlines at work or the endless steams of data from newshouses, educational programs and social media. Fact is, people are more stressed out than ever and this is reflected in the deterioration of our work, relationships and general standard of living. Among its many hundreds of benefits, meditation happens to be an unparalleled stress-relieving tool. It also facilitates disruptive innovation, increased productivity, empowering perspectives and general wellbeing. This may be one of the reasons why the past couple of years have seen an unprecedented amount of research into the subject and the recommendation that everyone learn how to do it. It is fascinating to see that by practicing meditation, we can play an active role in changing the brain and can increase our well-being and quality of life - Britta Hölzel Harvard University Affiliate Researcher 1.3 Mission: My mission is to dispel misconceptions and rebrand meditation as a creative innovation, stress-relief and productivity tool by giving schools, sports teams, companies and individuals a first-hand experience of its incredible benefits. 6
1.4 Vision: To be a leading authority on meditation and mindfulness practices and facilitate its adoption across all areas of life so that its benefits may ripple throughout society and the global community as a whole. I d like to see mindfulness and meditation become as simple, practical and commonplace as brushing one s teeth. 1.5 Objectives: To rebrand meditation as a creative innovation, stress-relief and productivity tool. To educate people on the countless misconceptions around mindfulness and meditation (eg. doesn t it go against my religion or isn t it the same as exercise? ) To make mindfulness and meditation practices simple, practical and relevant to the modern man. To deliver customized, client-orientated mindfulness and meditation solutions To educate people on how their brains actually work so they can better leverage its innate capacities to give an understanding of The Mechanics Of The Mind. To educate people on what happens physiologically in their brains and bodies when they meditate to give an understanding of The Science of Meditation. To develop mindfulness and meditation programs suited to schools, businesses and government. To facilitate the realisation of Vision 2030 by equipping the Namibian people with mental health, focus and peace of mind. To be the go-to meditation and mindfulness coach in Namibia, then Africa, and finally become a global speaker. 7
To collaborate with other wellness practitioners dedicated to raising the collective s mental-emotional well-being. 2. What I offer: I want to start by stating that though I ve completed my training, I am not a meditation teacher, I m a meditation coach. What s the difference and why should you care? Nowadays you can find almost any information and a ton of courses on the web, and that s true for meditation too, but here s what s likely to happen: You ll be inspired for a while, then fall off the wagon You ll start wasting energy beating yourself up about the fact that you can t do it You ll be unsure about whether you re doing it right You ll be unsure about whether or not you re making progress You won t feel 100% confident saying: Yes I meditate You ll become heavily dependent on calming music or apps, you ll feel good while you listen to them, but fail to maintain that peaceful momentum throughout the rest of your day. 8
So how does having a coach help me? Not only will I teach you techniques but I ll also: - Give regular, brief science-based mini-lectures on areas that become more relevant as you develop in your practice - Give regular, brief spirituality-based mini-lectures on areas that become more relevant as you develop in your practice (if that interests you) - Manage your expectations without limiting your progress potential - Hold you accountable and help you show up during your meditations (trust me, you will fall off the wagon, but I ll explain why and be there to catch you) - Ask powerful questions to help you grow in your practice and solve your own problems - Act as a sounding board during points of uncertainty or discomfort - Hold space and energy while meditating with you in sessions - Intuit and anticipate both your needs and questions as you progress customization is key Please see my Individual & Group coaching options for more details on how exactly I might help you. 9
The first time I ever meditated was with Melissa and it was an incredible experience. Yes, that VERY FIRST TIME. A result of her energy being so great, I felt super calm, full of elation and as though everything was achievable. In short, I was hooked! As an actress, I find meditation extremely important for shedding layers, putting them back on again, connecting, releasing and just generally delivering my best onstage. I am a complete convert and believer in its value. I am so so grateful that Melissa introduced me to it. In a sense, she saved me, and in doing so, I hope to do the same for others. Buhle Ngaba, South African Actress/ Co-Founder Indigo Public Performed with internationally renowned theatre-makers such as John Kani (Tony award-winner), Andrew Buckland, David Kramer, Susan Danford & Ubom Buhle was also recently nominated for two of the most prestigious theatre awards in South Africa, the Fleur du Cap and the Naledi s. I've learned that mediation is more than just sitting quietly to relax - which is what I thought it was before speaking to Melissa. I now know that it's a moment to silence the noise that's rumbling past and through you all day every day and tapping into the little voice that IS there inside you giving you that chance to listen, feel and engage with that. It's a chance to build a relationship with yourself that is rooted in trusting yourself - trusting that you really know what's best for you and learning to go with that. There is nothing (and I mean absolutely nothing) more powerful than realising you're completely in your own driver's seat. Life doesn't have to happen to you. And the answers are the tingly feelings on the inside. She lives absolutely everything she teaches. And you find yourself believing it to be true because you see the positive power of meditation reflected in her own life. She isn't asking or telling anyone to do anything she hasn't put through its paces on her own. Her spirit is light and bright and, without even knowing it, she nudges me into wanting to be the best version of myself. Sarah Koopman Features Editor, Marie Claire Magazine, South Africa 10