MATL Issue #2: 5 Tips to get started with meditation
Last week I posted on LinkedIn encouraging people to meditate this year. My great LinkedIn community filled the comments with meditation tips and success stories about how meditation has dramatically improved their life.
One of those comments asked for tips to get started with meditation, below are my suggestions to start meditating:
1. Start small. 5 min is OK.
When trying something new, it's essential to start small and focus on consistency. You'll be amazed at how much impact a five-minute meditation can have on your day. You can, of course, do more or even less. So give yourself the grace to start small with your practice.
2. Use guided meditations.
It can be weird to sit in silence. You might fall asleep, or more likely, your mind will wander. I built my meditation practice using this free audiobook, 21 Day Meditation . It is a set of guided meditations you can do over 21 days. Several guided meditation resources are available, and I encourage you to find the one that works for you. You don't have to start your meditation in complete silence. Guided meditations helped me build the foundation of my meditation practice & I still do guided meditations regularly today. Few other guided meditation resources I found in this great detailed list here :
3. Give yourself grace. If your mind wanders, it's OK. Just bring yourself back to the moment and refocus.
When meditating, try to think of your thoughts like clouds you are observing on a beautiful summer day. As you are sitting there, clouds are moving from your left to right or right to left. It would be silly for you to lay there and try to control the clouds and control the direction they are moving in, right?
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So don't do that with your thoughts. If you are meditating and your mind starts to wander, see it, acknowledge it, and move on. Don't beat yourself up for your mind wandering, don't say to yourself, "Come on, focus." Just take a deep breath and come back to your meditation.
Always be kind to yourself. Especially be kind to yourself when meditating.
4. The act of trying to meditate and taking 5 minutes for yourself is the whole point. So don't think of your meditation as good or bad, just that you did it and took that time for yourself.
This point is so important. Don't ever label your meditation practice as good or bad. You didn't have a good meditation session or a bad one because your mind wandered. You meditated, and that is the win. The act of meditating, the fact that you decided to take some time for yourself despite how busy you are and how much is on your plate, is all that matters. Pat yourself on the back every time you meditate and thank yourself for taking the time for yourself.
5. Find what works for you.
If you don't agree with any of the other tips or strategies here, listen to this one. Make meditation work for you. This is your practice; this is your chance to be selfish. If meditating in the morning doesn't work for you, do it at night. If guided meditations don't work, try music. If you start out liking to meditate lying down but want to switch to walking meditation, then switch it up and be proud of yourself for changing and evolving. Meditation is spending time with yourself so make it about you and only you.
If you're starting your meditation practice out, give these five tips a try, and let me know how they work for you.
The Marathon Continues
#TMC
PreSales Engineer with a strong background in AWS Cloud, CRM, and Cloud Native Tools.
2 年I see the guided options, another great option is Headspace series on Netflix 'Headspace Guide to Meditation'. I enjoyed the series because I'm very much into visual. My issue was staying consistent, I think trying to go hard with 30 minute sessions caused me to stop. I'll take your advice, take 5 minutes out of the day and see how I feel.
CEO @ Executive Presence | We help companies build trust & awareness through executive thought leadership
2 年While I like to try to meditate first thing in the morning when I get to the office, sometimes I benefit from flexibility - at some point in the day. Some days that comes at the end of the day when I put my son down at night. Rigidly sticking to the same time each day sometimes makes it harder to be consistent.
Host & CEO @ GreenTech Network | LinkedIn Top Voice in Technology & Innovation
2 年I'm glad I have some time to try this, AJ. I love the cloud analogy. ?? ??
Founder @ Demo to Close / Sales trainer & coach for SMB AEs and SaaS companies that want to sell better & close larger deals / 2X VP of Sales
2 年ever watch Wim Hof (AKA Iceman)?
UNT Dallas College of Law, Class of 2026 - Legal Business Strategy, Legal Research, Legal Writing
2 年Same place every day works for me. Either before my day or at the end. I find it tough to do it mid-day as more things have, by then, piled up to distract me. At the top of my meditation game, I could 'drop in' any time and was as energized as after a short run.