Goldie Hawn wants to teach under-privileged youth her health secret
Legendary actress Goldie Hawn, known not only for her iconic screen roles but also for her bubbly personality, wants to reach out and teach under-privileged…
Actress Goldie Hawn says meditation is important in the classroom. (Albert H. Teich/ Shutterstock)
Legendary actress Goldie Hawn, known not only for her iconic screen roles but also for her bubbly personality, wants to reach out and teach under-privileged youth one of the secrets to her physical and mental health–meditation.
Hawn has joined forces with Dr. Oz’s Health Corps in an effort to dedicated to peer-mentoring and teaching under-privileged youth healthier lifestyle choices. Among the initiatives the partnership?officially named Goldie’s “MindUP” program?will focus on is meditation and it’s usefulness in a classroom setting.
SEE ALSO: Meditation: The key that unlocks your healthiest and best self
“I’ve been doing it (meditation) since the ’70s,” Goldie Hawn told Access Hollywood. “It is a way of calming your mind down, it’s a way of creating a single point of focus and it’s a way of creating tremendous equanimity where you understand your position with everyone else.”
She credits meditation for her success as well as her ability to lead a happy life without much anxiety or stress. “It strengthens a lot of areas in your own life, your ability of resilience, kindness and it all happens with just an ability to quiet your mind and focus on one thing. It’s really medicinal and it is a Rx to a happy life,” Goldie said.
Mindfulness in the workplace
A deep respect for meditation is not something new for Hawn. For more than a decade the actress has been advocating the practice and has become a spokesperson to people around the globe. In January of 2014, Hawn led a mindfulness panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos where she and a group of experts spoke on the merits of meditation and mindfulness in a business setting.
“Many of the worlds top business leaders, from Arianna Huffington and Rupert Murdoch to Ford Motor Company Chairman Bill Ford and Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini, credit mindfulness in the workplace as part of their success,” Hawn wrote at the time. “The ability to remain calm and focused in stressful situations is central to making positive decisions? I firmly believe that by cultivating mindful change and raising awareness, we can ultimately transform our world for the better.”
Actress Goldie Hawn has been a supporter of meditation since the 1970′s. (vipflash/ Shutterstock)
Now, Goldie has taken her mission to the youth of America, branching out from her charity, The Hawn Foundation, to create MindUP. The program is designed to nurture optimism and happiness in the classroom, help eliminate bullying and aggression, increase empathy and compassion, all while resolving peer conflicts in schools.
“MindUP is a research-based training program for educators and children,” indicates The Hawn Foundation. “This program is composed of 15 lessons based in neuroscience. Students learn to self-regulate behavior and mindfully engage in focused concentration required for academic success.”
SEE ALSO: 6 ways mindfulness improves your health
Thus far, MindUP has reach more than 15,000 children worldwide, and with her new partnership, Hawn hopes to be able to influence thousands more.
“When we talk about the idea of meditation, you know unfortunately children can’t spend that much time meditating in the classroom, so what we do is we call them brain breaks,” Goldie explained. “Every brain needs a break and we do it three times a day, so you actually habituate quieting down so that teachers are able to manage the classroom. The kids know to make better decisions. We want to create healthier kids and we also want to create more mindful kids.”
