What If Mindfulness Could Be Simple?

"I train Yoga students in the 300 and 500-hour yoga teacher training, and part of that training includes a segment on Meditation and mindfulness. I always ask Bob Martin to provide that. He always comes well-prepared with videos, visuals, and life stories intertwined with deep and profound mindfulness and brain science teachings. He's funny and entertaining, and my students love him.

The last few times, he graciously offered to put my students through his 4-week Introduction to Meditation class, and I took it as well. He taught new techniques each week and provided us with an app to guide our daily practice. What's unique about how he teaches is that every day we practice, we write a short reflection on the app about the practice, and he responds to our logs every day. That daily coaching made a huge difference. I can't say enough good about it. My students loved the course, and I could see that it impacted how they see life."

I took Bob Martin's meditation class over a year ago, which has profoundly impacted my daily
life. One of the most valuable skills I learned is how to recognize and name my emotions—fear,
hurt, joy—in the moment and watch them pass by. Each class introduces a different meditation
technique with weekly assignments to help you practice. This really cool app is provided that
lets you comment on each daily assignment. Bob reads and responds to your comments every
day, which was my favorite part. It was here I realized there is no right or wrong way to meditate.
Bob is not just an instructor but a warm, caring, and wise mentor. His humor and genuine
interest in each student make the class incredibly engaging. His life stories add depth and
relatability to the lessons, making them resonate on a personal level. This was one of the best
classes I have ever taken, and when it's over, you are left with a tool belt of coping and calming
techniques that you can use for the rest of your life.

Having Bob Martin, serve as Chair of the Office of Leadership and Professional Development’s
(OLPD) Mindfulness Employee Resource Group (ERG) has been a wonderful experience for
our staff and faculty. Bob’s dedication and passion for mindfulness practices have fostered a
supportive and inclusive environment where staff and faculty feel valued and heard.
His innovative programs and thoughtful leadership have improved our workplace culture,
enhancing mental and social well-being. Bob consistently goes above and beyond to ensure
that each session is impactful, making a lasting positive impact on our personal and
professional lives. I am incredibly grateful for Bob's commitment and the meaningful difference
he and the Mindfulness ERG have made.

In my freshman year of college, I was going through a transitional phase in my life. Taking this meditation class with Bob helped my mental state stay level during my first year living off on my own. To this day, two years later, I still use the skills I learned from Bob’s course to help me
succeed and grow in life!

I had been trying to learn about meditation from various apps and found that they weren't quite what I wanted to do but I didn't know how to figure out how to proceed. Then, I took Bob's meditation class. He taught us about multiple different approaches to meditation and asked us to journal about our experiences every day. The journaling piece and his feedback on what I had written truly unlocked the door for me. I found what I was looking for, and it has helped me tremendously in my journey.

The one month introduction to mindfulness class with Bob Martin was a life changing experience for me. As someone with a job at a large global company, I was unsure whether I could make time for a daily meditation practice in my busy schedule. However, Bob's class found the perfect balance, meeting once a week for an hour-long session to learn new techniques and review our progress. The real magic happened during the daily 10-minute meditation sessions he recommended. Bob provided an excellent guided meditation app that made it easy to build this habit, and I was surprised by how much I was able to accomplish in just those brief periods of time. Rather than feeling like a chore, the daily practice became a moment of calm and clarity amidst the chaos of my workday. Bob has a remarkable talent for explaining the complex world of meditation in practical, easy-to understand ways. His teaching style blends deep knowledge with a warm, approachable manner that put me at ease. I learned that meditation is not about emptying the mind, but rather about simply noticing what it is already doing - and using gentle techniques to bring more balance and focus. By the end of the one month class, I felt a significant difference in my ability to manage stress, cultivate peace of mind, and show up more fully in all areas of my life. I'm so grateful to Bob for guiding me onto this transformative path of mindfulness, and I look forward to continuing my journey with him as my instructor and friend.

Bob has been an incredible resource and guide over the past two years. He has also been incredibly generous, sharing his own story and wisdom not only with me, but with my family. In fact, when I reached out to learn more about his expertise, he invited my adolescent son and I to visit him in his home on the weekend and explore our questions together. It has been a joy and an honor to learn from him.

I really liked taking Mr. Martin’s meditation class. I really liked sitting back and pretending that my thoughts were clouds that were just drifting by except for the fact that he always mispronounced my name. I usually get upset when people mispronounce my name, but I knew that Mr. Martin is really sweet and he cares for me so it’s OK if he mispronounces my name.

I used to get angry a lot, but Mr. Martin taught me to ask myself two questions. The first question is where do I feel my anger in my body it’s usually in my face and neck and the other question is, what thoughts are I having right now and by the time I ask those two questions I am usually not angry anymore. 

I didn't know I could watch my thoughts. They're really weird.

I really liked it when we learned how to label our thoughts. Then you can put them in files, just like in my computer, then they don't bother me anymore.