Does Meditation Work?
“Meditation is too complicated and it doesn’t work or do anything beneficial”
If you’re like me, you’ve tried meditation in the past, and you thought it was a pointless waste of time because it didn’t seem to work. You then gave up because it was a waste of your time and you didn’t see the benefits that everyone talks about.
You’ve had good intentions, you’ve sat down, tried to meditate, and been like, yeah, I’m gonna do this!
I’m finally gonna take the time and be able to meditate. This is going to change my life and make me more focused, relaxed and achieve all my goals
You then sit down, and you’ve lost focus right away.
But losing focus is the complete opposite of what you’re meant to be doing. You’re supposed to be focusing on one thing. Sitting still and calm whilst relaxing and focusing on breath.
Whilst that is the goal, getting all these random thoughts isn’t such a bad thing. If you cannot sit down and focus on your breathing for a long time, that’s completely fine. It’s consistency that is key.
The reason you’ve not been able to focus is you’ve approached Meditation in the wrong way. You’ve probably sat down and tried to do a 20-minute meditation straight away. You can’t expect yourself to do a 20-minute meditation on the first go. That’s like trying to swim for the first time, then expecting to immediately be able to do lengths of an Olympic-sized pool. It’s not gonna happen. You need to take a slower and more suitable and personalised approach.
what is meditation?
Meditation is a practice in which someone uses techniques like mindfulness or focusing the mind on objects, thought, or activity, to train attention and awareness, to achieve mental stability. So basically, closing your eyes and focusing equals meditation. It is literally that simple.
The main reason people never get into meditation, or anything in general, is because it seems too complicated. Long definitions like the one above don’t help, so heres a more simple one:
Meditation equals clearing your mind.
But, clearing your mind can be quite subjective.
For some people, clearing their mind can mean going on a walk, or removing distractions, or whatever it may be. For someone else, it could be going to the gym, or playing their favourite instrument etc.
Meditation – 3 Step Process
Meditation is a very different thing for different people. If you don’t have a certain way to clear your mind, here is a simple three-step process that I know will help you:
Step one
Close your eyes.
Okay, now this may be one of the most vital steps in this little three step program.
So close your eyes, and just focus, alright?
Now…step two.
Focus on your breathing. All you need to do is simply breathe. You do it all the time, 24-7, so it shouldn’t be too difficult right?
However, what you need to do is exaggerate your breathing. And that just means inhaling deeper and exhaling for longer.
So you do that for 30 seconds to a minute.
Sometimes even five minutes. Do this process for however long you’re comfortable with.
A lot of people have said the reason that they can’t meditate is because they get too many random thoughts. They can’t just stay focused.
This is where step 3 comes in:
If you get any random thoughts that aren’t related to your meditation you can acknowledge them and notice what they are. Then bring your focus back to your breathing.
A lot of people see these random thoughts as bad things as they’re unable to stay focused. Yet, they’re actually a good thing. By you having these random thoughts, you have to carry out the process of acknowledging them. Then bringing your focus back to your breathing. What this does is it allows you to improve your skill of remaining focused for a certain period of time.
As we know, focus is a very vital thing in the act of meditation. So by having these random thoughts, you’re actually making meditation easier. You’ll be continually improving the process.
Meditation has many benefits
Meditation allows you to improve your ability to focus. This then means that you can stay focused on your business, working out, or whatever you are doing or aim to achieve.
Your mind will be clear, so you can observe your thoughts and make better decisions. You’ll take action quicker and remain present. You will also have an increase in imagination, creativity, productivity, and an increase in positive emotions.
If you have goals that you want to reach, and you feel like you’ve not been able to
focus on them, give meditation a try.
Keep it Simple
You probably started reading this post because you wanted to learn exactly how to meditate. You want to have a step-by-step guide, and that’s fine. I may write a more traditional comprehensive guide that contains more techniques, scientific facts, theories, rules etc for meditation. But it’s best to keep it simple and to just try.
Also you may not have realised that throughout your whole life, you’ve meditated countless times. All those times you have done things that help you clear your mind, like going to the gym, going for a walk, driving your car, playing your favourite instrument, or whatever it is for you…its all a form of meditation.
So anything that you do that allows your mind to be clear and relaxed, and feel at ease, is a form of meditation. Meditation comes in many different forms for different people. You may visualise it as sitting in a garden with your legs crossed, inhaling and exhaling but for someone else, it may be taking their dog for a walk. So whether you realise it or not, you have actually meditated many times in the past.
Summary
As you can see Meditation can be many different things for different people and it is best to keep it simple. It’s also good to go down the traditional route, which is why I’ve provided this simple three-step process:
- Close your eyes
- Focus on your breathing
- Acknowledge any thoughts that pass by
So if recently you’ve been having some negative emotions and you just don’t feel productive, try out meditation. I guarantee you’ll notice the difference.
Meditation can really allow us to feel great so it is worth paying attention to it and giving it a try.
