Before you start…

1. Get clear on your intent—why do you want to meditate? To relax? Lower your blood pressure? Self-exploration? Feel more connected to nature? Be a better parent? Attain enlightenment?
2. Pick a type of meditation to try that seems easy and appealing. In addition to the types I describe here, I can also recommend several excellent books to read for further ideas.
3. If you feel better in any way from meditating, then continue. If not, then try a different style. However, do give it a fair trial before moving on to a new one—a few weeks if possible.
4. Ignore the rules. Rules are for aspiring Buddhist monks or Catholic nuns. If something works for you, enjoy!
5. Meditation is not a competitive sport. Don’t judge one experience against another or compare yours to accounts you may read about—including mine! Meditation is only about your experience—no one else can do it for you and no one else’s experience matters.

You’ll find many ideas and techniques on this blog, but this is the simplest way I know to begin.

How To Meditate in 5 Easy Steps

1. Pick a place where you won’t be interrupted for at least 10 minutes. Lock the door if you have to, or hang a Do Not Disturb sign.
2. Get comfortable—loosen your belt, tie, scarf, etc.
3. Do a few deep breaths, pushing outward from your diaphragm.
4. Closing your eyes is optional, though it usually helps in the beginning to shut out visual distractions. That said, you may find it helpful to get mentally centered by looking at a specific object or image for awhile. See Setting the Mood for more on this.
5. Allow your mind to become a blank movie screen and see what it plays for you. You may see images, you will undoubtedly have thoughts about your day—what has happened so far and what you have yet to do. Simply acknowledge all those things and allow them to fade away. You aren’t trying to make your mind be devoid of thought—that will drive you mad! Simply watch the movie as it goes by in your head, not lingering on any thought or following it off on tangents. The idea is to become detached from your thoughts, an observer who can simply say: Oh, that’s an interesting thought. If the movie metaphor doesn’t work for you, try visualizing a stream or river with leaves floating down it, and place each new thought that enters your mind on a passing leaf and watch it sail away. Clouds drifting by in a blue sky also works, as do puffs of smoke rising from a campfire. Any scene that is also peaceful and relaxing but has some element of removal will do just fine. To start, stay with this exercise for ten minutes if you can.

Guess what? You just meditated! At first, this may not seem very profound, and you may be inclined to wonder: What’s all the fuss about? As with any discipline, the early stages can be less exciting, but if you develop your ability to stay focused, when you move on to other techniques you’ll be much more apt to find true joy in meditating. If you can’t wait or you find this process too dull, go ahead and move on to other meditation techniques—just bring some patience, as it does take time to learn how to focus on only one thing.

So what’s the difference between meditating and daydreaming?

Glad you asked. When you daydream you allow your mind to follow whatever tangents you like, which leads you to fantasize or visualize new realities for yourself. Daydreams are great, and a powerful way to get inspired and generate new ideas. Learning to meditate does not in any way mean you should stop daydreaming. Meditation is simply a different activity, one where you do not follow the tangents, in fact you discourage them from showing up and you dismiss them when they do. Meditating is like going to the gym and building a new mental muscle.

How long and how often to meditate

That’s what everyone wants to know. That was your first question, I bet. The answer, like everything else to do with meditation, is up to you. Most schools and gurus urge you to do it twice a day, every day, working you way up to 20-30 minutes or more at each session. Big surprise—I’m not that rigid in my thinking! Most days I only meditate in the morning—but sometimes it lasts for an hour or more. If I’ve had a stressful day (which hardly ever happens anymore, I’m thrilled to report) I’ll meditate again just before bed to unwind. That said, in the beginning when you’re learning the techniques, it does help to be consistent and do it once a day. Researchers have learned that in order to create new neural pathways in our brains and make a new habit permanent, we need to practice it daily for at least a month or so. Experiments have even shown that skipping just one day sends you back to zero. I do believe that’s true, so I urge you to sustain your commitment to trying it for at least 10 minutes every day for a month before you decide it isn’t for you.

There’s a good reason I call this section 5 EASY steps—I don’t subscribe to the notion that meditating has to be difficult or even work. Although one of the books I recommend repeatedly refers to meditation as hard work (LeShan), I disagree on that point. I see no reason to set up a negative belief. I would do just the opposite. If you’re someone like me who enjoys using affirmations, try these:

Meditating is a joyous and relaxing process.

Meditating provides great insights into what motivates me.

I meditate on what I want more of in my life—love, compassion, delight.

Meditating on nature connects me deeply to the world around me.

I make time daily to meditate because I know it repays me in clear thinking.

Please leave me comments on the blog posts and let me know your reactions and experiences—I’d love to hear from you! (There’s a comment box at the end of every regular post on this blog.)

Click here if you’re ready to try some of my specially created meditations.

Click on any of the following links for more information:

Setting the Mood to Meditate
Benefits of Meditation
Expanding Your Current Meditation Practice
Why I Meditate and How It Affects Me