FAQ.

Answers to the questions we get asked the most.

 
 
 

Individual and Collective Wellbeing FAQ:

Classes and Journeys:

  • Absolutely. There are no levels. Many people who come are total beginners. Others have some experience but perhaps haven’t yet sat for 45 minutes at a time. We design every class to appeal to beginners and experts alike. Our mission is to make meditation more accessible, so no prior knowledge is assumed.

  • We get it, 45 minutes sounds super intimidating. Especially considering most of our customers have never meditated, or have only done so for 5 to 10 minutes at a time on their phones.

    But you can feel confident that our instructors are trained to guide you every step of the way. Your teacher won’t leave you alone with your thoughts for more than a few minutes at a time. Most often our clients are staggered by how quickly the time went by.

  • Every session is guided. Of course there will be some wonderful moments of silence. But purpose of the classes is to teach you, which we can’t do if we all sit in silence.

    Each of our classes aim to demystify some of the key elements of mindfulness, to teach you some skills to use outside the studio, and to give you a shared experience of the power of meditation itself to leave you feeling blissfully calm and light by the time the class finishes.

  • Absolutely! Please let us know ahead of time so that we can make any adjustments. We have really comfortable organic cotton meditation cushions, with ankle support, and we encourage you to move and stretch whenever you need. You can also choose to lie down, or to bag a seat on the sofa to give better back support.

  • Each of our classes aim to demystify some of the key elements of mindfulness and meditation, teach you some skills to use outside the studio, and give you a taste of guided meditation itself to leave you feeling blissfully calm and light by the time the class finishes.

  • In a typical session your teacher will guide you in relaxing your body, becoming aware of your breath, calming your mind, connecting to your senses and enjoying a deeper connection with the present moment.

  • We call our group classes “journeys”, because each session is designed to completely transport you from stressed to calm, or from exhausted to energised, and from self-critical to compassionate. A journey better encapsulates the experience we want you to enjoy.

  • For the most part we teach mindfulness meditation, which is simple, powerful, accessible and proven to be effective by a huge amount of scientific research.

    We also teach compassion meditation (metta) as practised by the Dalai Lama and countless Buddhist monks for the last 2600 years (albeit we make it very relevant for the 21st century).

    We also make use of visualisations to leave you feeling transported, and to teach by giving the felt experience, rather than lecturing you on the theory.

  • The Levitate Style is firmly rooted in Mindfulness, in the Joseph Goldstein / Pema Chodron / Jack Kornfield / Thich Nhat Hanh tradition.

    We like to stay grounded in the neuroscience and the research, and for this reason most frequently practice with Sam Harris and his excellent Waking Up app.

    We take some inspiration from Vedic Meditation (think Deepak Chopra, Ram Dass and Davidji).

    And we love Metta (or Loving Kindness Meditation) and are inspired by Tara Brach, the Dalai Lama, and others.

  • It can be intimidating to sign up for a meditation class, not knowing what you’re in for.

    But we are firm believers in making things as accessible as humanly possible. That means every session caters for absolute beginners as well as experienced meditators. It also means that we use plain English, avoid all dogma and don’t ask anyone to chant or wrap their head around difficult theory.

    We want you to enjoy the session so much that you feel motivated to explore more. And when you want to chat, we’d love to help shed light on the more esoteric aspects of the rich Buddhist tradition we form a part of.

  • Every teacher is qualified to teach. Every teacher carries full insurance. Everyone selected for the platform is selected for their excellence in their field. To meet the team and see where they qualified, head to our team page.

  • Most people find meditation to be an incredibly relaxing experience. However, as with any new skill, meditation can take some getting used to. The good news is that absolutely everyone has the ability to quieten their mind. This will get easier the more you practise.

  • If you are currently anxious or low, it can be tough to sit with your thoughts, without the usual distractions to escape into. However, the goal is to feel your emotions, and experience your thoughts (rather than avoiding them). Once you have experienced them it is possible to let them go. And therein lies the deep relief, relaxation and freedom you deserve.

    We can’t give medical advice. If you have a diagnosed condition, we’d always recommend checking in with your doctor or therapist before trying attending a class.

  • People tend to leave with a big smile on their face. You are likely to leave a session feeling lighter and more expansive, as if a weight has lifted. We often joke that you shouldn’t operate heavy machinery after a meditation, but the truth is, whatever you do next with your day, you will be more present, creative, reflective, and likely to bring your best self.

  • Most people like to wear yoga clothes or loose fitting trousers that are comfy to sit cross-legged in (or even lie down in). We only ask that you take off your shoes before you enter the studio.

  • Plans change. You can cancel/reschedule up to 24 hours before any class or consultation with no charge. If you need to cancel later than that, you will be charged for the visit. Unfortunately, cancellation is not possible for workshops & special events, though it is possible to transfer your place to a friend.

    For our full cancellation policy, please read our terms and conditions.

Private coaching:

  • Each coaching session will focus on your individual challenges and questions with time set aside for guided practice. The format of the sessions themselves, and the number of sessions needed, is a conversation between teacher and student.

  • Everything you discuss with your coach is held in the strictest confidence, and will not be repeated outside the space. The more you can open up about the issues or challenges that bring you to the session, the more your coach can tailor the session just for you, and the faster the progress.

  • We recognise it isn’t always possible to travel to our studio space. We offer group and private meditation classes at the studio, but can also travel to any London location within the M25 to teach at your home or workplace. Please send us an email with details of your request.

  • Most of our customers opt for 1:1 coaching sessions over Zoom. These have the advantage of being possible from anywhere with an internet connection, and allow you to practice from the comfort of your home, in the office or even whilst travelling.

  • Yes most of our coaches offer a discount for bookings of 4 or more coaching sessions. Please talk to us to enquire.

  • Life happens! You can cancel/reschedule up to 24 hours before any coaching session with no charge.

    If you need to cancel later than that, you will be charged for the visit.

    For our full cancellation policy, please read our terms and conditions.

Anything else?

  • We can't promise that you will be able to float off the ground using nothing but your mind. Though if you do, we want to hear about it!

    However, we aim to equip you with skills that will lift your mind, body and spirit, raise your resilience, and help you rise above whatever life throws at you.

  • Our founder Ryan Nell is a former successful advertising executive, who was glad to leave that behind him to pursue this dream. Ryan is 200-hour meditation teacher qualified. He did his training at the world-famous Unplug Meditation in Los Angeles, under the supervision of Suze Yalof Schwartz (founder of Unplug) and the tuition of Davidji (globally renowned teacher of teachers).

  • Davidji is a Vedic Meditation Master, who apprenticed under Deepak Chopra, and who was later Dean of Chopra University and was responsible for teaching thousands of students how to meditate.

    Since starting his own chapter, David has taught many high-pressure professionals how to meditate including championship-winning NBA teams, the US Navy Seals, the Dutch Special Forces, the Bank of America and Merrill Lynch amongst many others. David has also certified hundreds of meditation teachers around the world, as well as being a best-selling author and stress-management expert.

  • Ask us anything. We’re here to partner you on your journey. Please just drop us an email or call us or WhatsApp us on 020 3026 1038.

Employee Wellbeing FAQ:

Booking us:

  • Yes absolutely. We offer a wide selection of yoga, breathwork, mindfulness, soundbaths, pilates, massage, coaching and more. Get in touch with your brief and we will be delighted to chat you through your options.

  • We are happy to offer all activities both in person and virtually. Many clients ask us for hybrid sessions. We are able to offer these in London within the M25, and sometimes further afield with a supplement for travel time and costs. Please talk to ustalk to us to discuss your brief.

  • We do this for many clients, over Zoom, Google Meet, or their own preferred streaming solution. This enables us to reach colleagues across time zones and on all continents, to foster truly global connection.

  • We currently offer short (4 week) and full (8 week) mindfulness courses for company employees. These happen either face-to-face or virtually (and sometimes hybrid to accomodate a distributed workplace). Both are designed to equip your team with the skill to meditate on their own (as the largest benefits from mindfulness come from consistent practice).

  • We coach CEOs and C-Suite teams to help them manage the demands of their roles, and stay present for their colleagues. Doing this, alongside group mindfulness coaching for staff, shows real leadership and a commitment to embedding mindfulness in your organisation.

  • Ironically there is often no one looking after the HR department. Amidst challenges like the Great Resignation and the shift to working from home, it is more important than ever that HR teams are given opportunities to decompress. We specialise in offering tailored sessions for people in these roles.

  • Yes we are able to fit our wellbeing experiences into existing away days, or curate entire days including nutritious, healthy food and stimulating wellness activities. Please get in touch to discuss your requirements.

  • We have appeared in front of audiences as large as 500 people in venues like Printworks London (for ClearScore), Wilderness Festival (for the festival go-ers), and we’d be excited to talk to you about how we could form a stimulating part of your annual conference, summer party etc! Please get in touch to discuss your brief.

  • We don’t currently charge a per head fee. We realise many of our competitors do, and that it makes economic sense to do so. However we feel that there should be no limits to the number of people who can attend and find some calm.

  • Yes. Please just email us at here to request our latest corporate wellbeing rate card.

  • Yes. We have organised these for large tech firms and boutique luxury brands. We offer anything from a fully curated day with gifting, food and activities, to one-off talks/workshops designed to fit into an existing day you have planned. Chat to us to find out more.

More about our experiences:

  • Absolutely. Our classes are suitable for all levels. Many staff who attend are total beginners. We design every session to appeal to beginners and experts alike. Our mission is to make wellbeing more accessible, so no prior knowledge or skill is assumed.

  • We find 45 minutes is the sweet spot for allowing people to unwind and become fully immersed in the session.

    That said, many clients want sessions to be shorter (20-30 minutes) to enable more people to join. We can work with whatever time length you have in mind.

    You can feel confident that our instructors will make any slot enjoyable. Consistently employees tell us they are staggered by how quickly the time went by.

  • We always agree the brief ahead of time. Is the goal to help people focus, to re-energise them, to combat burnout, or to give them an indulgent, relaxing experience?

    Whatever the brief, people tend to leave with a big smile on their face, feeling lighter and more expansive, as if a weight has lifted.

    You and your teammates will be more present, creative, reflective, and capable of bringing their best selves to work.

  • We call our group classes “journeys”, because each session is designed to completely transport you from stressed to calm, or from exhausted to energised, and from self-critical to compassionate. A journey better encapsulates the experience we want you to enjoy.

  • Each of our mindfulness classes aim to demystify some of the key elements of mindfulness, teach employees some skills to use outside the studio, and give them a taste of guided meditation itself to leave them feeling blissfully calm and light by the time the class finishes.

  • All of our classes are guided. The purpose of the classes is to teach your staff, which we can’t do if we all sit in silence. Some are accompanied by music to create a more immersive experience. We’ll discuss this with you ahead of time.

  • For the most part we teach mindfulness meditation, which is simple, powerful, accessible and proven to be effective by a huge amount of scientific research.

    We also offer compassion meditation (metta) as practised by the Dalai Lama and countless Buddhist monks for the last 2600 years (albeit we make it very relevant for the 21st century).

    We also make use of visualisations to leave your team feeling transported, bringing to life the felt experience, rather than lecturing you on the theory.

  • We are firm believers in making things as accessible as humanly possible. We keep firmly rooted in the neuroscience and research.

    That means every session caters for absolute beginners as well as experienced meditators. It also means that we use plain English, avoid all dogma or mention of spirituality, and don’t ask anyone to chant or wrap their head around difficult theory.

    We want your team to enjoy the session so much that you feel motivated to explore more.

  • Every teacher is qualified to teach. Every teacher carries full insurance. Everyone selected for the platform is selected for their excellence in their field. To meet the team and see where they qualified, head to our team page.

  • Our founder Ryan Nell is former successful advertising executive, who founded Levitate and retrained as a 200-hour meditation teacher in 2018. He did his training at the globally-renowned Unplug Meditation in Los Angeles, under the supervision of Suze Yalof Schwartz and Davidji (stress management expert, and teacher of teachers).

1:1 employee coaching:

  • Each coaching session will focus on your employee’s individual challenges and questions with time set aside for guided practice. The format of the sessions themselves, and the number of sessions needed, is a conversation between coach and employee (though you can set any limits you like).

  • Everything your employees discuss with the coach is held in the strictest confidence, and will not be repeated outside the space.

  • We can travel to any London location within the M25 to coach at your workplace. All the coach will need is a meeting room / office with two chairs and a door!

    Please send us an email to explore coaching options.

  • Most of our corporate clients opt for 1:1 coaching sessions over Zoom. These have the advantage of being possible from anywhere with an internet connection, and allow your staff to receive coaching wherever they are.

  • Yes we offer discounts for large bookings. Please talk to us to enquire.

  • Employees can cancel/reschedule up to 24 hours before any coaching session with no charge.

    If staff need to cancel later than that, you will be charged for the visit (unless another employee can take the slot).

    Some of our clients choose to pass on the cost of missed appointments to staff. We’ll work with you to design a policy that suits your organisation and budget.

AOB:

  • Yes. We are big fans of anyone making the world a better place. Please speak to us about your requirements and we’ll do what we can to accommodate them.

  • Ask us anything. We’re here to partner you on your journey. Please just drop us an email or call us or WhatsApp us on 020 3026 1038.