Meditation Tips


Take 10 minutes a day to change your life! Not sure whether to read on? 
It will take you 3 minutes to read this and just 10 minutes a day to change you life.
The simplest of tasks which is to sit for 10 minutes a day can turn your life around because you bring that simplicity into everything you do.

What is Mindfulness
Being mindful means “inclined to be aware” and mindfulness is the act of that. To practice mindfulness it is good to have an open mind to new experiences as well as a different way of thinking about things. 
Becoming mindful allows you to see yourself and the world around you just as it is without any preconceived notions of what it “should be”. A basic meditation is the sitting meditation that concentrates on the breath.

The Benefits
There are many benefits to practicing mindfulness throughout your day. Some of these benefits are in helping overcome stress, improving memory, and helping with depression and anxiety.
Mindful meditation also gives you a place you can go to re-evaluate your world and to accept current situations, look at and understand yourself, your surroundings and your current situation. In order to make the right changes in your life you first need to really understand where you are. 
When you stop and look at your life and surroundings as an observer you can make the decisions you need to make with much more clarity. 
Mindfulness meditation will also lower stress as you try to get things done throughout your day which makes work feel much more natural and less threatening.

How to Begin in 7 Simple Steps

  1. Have a Ritual - It helps to start each session with a ritual. This can be lighting a candle, dimming the lights, burning incense or simply placing your cushion or chair in the same place. It is good to do your practice in the same place using the same ritual. Repetition helps the brain to remember it is time to switch off. If you feel you have no space to do this, place a cushion or chair in the corner of a room with your back to room and put a plant, nice light, statue or anything that is pleasing to eye in that corner, that way you have turned your back on everything else and are free to clear your mind.
  2. Play some Music - When you begin mindfulness you do not have to sit in silence, it can really help with the practice to listen to some meditation music as this can give you something else to focus on other than your breathing. There is a link at the bottom to my Youtube account if you would like some music.
  3. Set an Alarm - Sit and meditate and breath for the set amount of time. When your bell or alarm goes off, slowly open your eyes and go about your day.
  4. A Quiet Space and a little time - Find or make about 10 minutes time in a quiet room or place you can go to with the least amount of distractions. Make sure you are comfortable by either sitting in a chair or on the floor on a cushion. It is good to set an alarm so you are not distracted by wondering how long you have done! It is best to approach meditation with as little preconceived notions as possible. The less we expect from it the better it will work.
  5. Just Breath - Sit down in your quite room in a comfortable position, set your timer, and close your eyes. All you need to do now is be aware of the breath that is coming in and out of your nose. Breath in slow through your nose and concentrate on how the air feels hitting your nostrils. While breathing in, breath deep through your stomach, not your chest. As the breath in starts to slow down concentrate on the split second between the end of your breath in and the beginning of your breath out. Then feel the breath going out of your nostril. Once again, concentrate on the split second that your breath changes from going out to coming back in.
  6. Let your thoughts drift in then let them float away - The reason that you concentrate on your breath is because it is something real; it is reality. You will notice as you sit there for an extended period of time thoughts will enter your brain like crazy. The idea is not to “block” or “stop” your thoughts from happening. That will lead to frustration. Instead, concentrate on the reality of your situation and allow your thoughts to enter and exit your mind as your breath enters and exits your nostrils.
  7. Be patient - This is the practice of mindfulness meditation. Be patient with meditation. If you do this daily I promise you that you will start to see a difference within a month.

Tips if you are finding it difficult

Be Patient 
Be patient with meditation. If you do this daily I promise you that you will start to see a difference within a month.Many people that try to start a mindfulness meditation practice stop it after one or even a few days of practice. Mostly because meditation and being mindful is hard as many different situations can come up.

Feeling Uncomfortable
Sometimes people get uncomfortable with the thoughts that come up or how they are seated. When thoughts come up move your attention back to your breathing and let the thoughts follow through their natural progression through your mind remaining unattached to them. Be like an observer of your thoughts, look at them but do not participate in them. 
The same thought may keep coming up and just keep doing the same. It does get easier. If you find yourself getting frustrated, finish your practice and come back again the next day. Be gentle on yourself. 
As far as being physically uncomfortable you may need to move your body around a little bit or find an alternative position that is more comfortable. Sometimes the minor pain or restlessness or your body as you sit there real and it is good to observe where you feel discomfort or stiffness as this can also be  sign of where you hold your tension. Try breathing into to it and releasing some of the tension.

Great Expectations!
Try to have the least amount of expectations as possible. Meditation and mindfulness will bring you peace, understanding, and lower your stress levels, but it does not all happen instantly. Remember you are aiming for feeling reality for the way that it is. Keep moving forward and shift your expectations. You are on the path and will keep on moving forward.

Where will the path go? Why meditate everyday?
As you continue you daily practice some peculiar things will begin to occur. As you live your life and do your daily work you may find that you start to slow down and concentrate on your breath when you become stressed or overwhelmed. This will ground you and help you realise what the current reality is. 
Rather than immediately reacting and wondering what it could mean when you encounter a situation, you are able to step back and see it for what it really is without getting excited or upset.

Things will start to look different
You may be able to slow down and ask yourself, “why am I doing this?" You start to see the reality of all situations in work and life.

Practicing mindfulness will start a chain reaction in your life. Once you take the first step things will unfold in time. The simplest of tasks which is to sit for 10 minutes a day can turn your life around because you bring that simplicity into everything you do. When you think you have not got 10 minutes a day think of all the things that you do in a day that take 10 minutes and serve very little purpose. 
Take tine for you to change your life. That is why so many people have started to practice mindful meditation. So now its your turn. 

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