One January morning, I sat down with 15 others in a secluded monastery tucked away in a busy suburb.
It was my first meditation class, and I was just as curious and a tad nervous as everyone else around me. The very notion of meditation fascinated me, and I was excited about what it could unfold for me.
That day, I started my meditation journey, which eventually turned into a daily habit of pure bliss. And there are 5 steps that helped me in this process… to make it a habit, and most importantly a journey.
Here they are to help you with yours.
1. Create a separate meditation space
Setting up a dedicated meditation space is an important first step to create a daily meditation habit.
This will serve to condition your mind into a peaceful and spiritual state and to prepare you for meditation, both mentally and physically.
It will also make the practice of meditation special.
Here are a few tips to set it up:
- Select an area that feels right for you. It can even be outdoors or a quiet corner of your bedroom.
- Remove distractions. Remove bright bold paintings, decorations and any furniture. A space with neutral colors like white is the best. Keep it uncluttered and free from distractions.
- Natural light helps. This is because our body’s natural sleep-wake cycle, called the circadian rhythm, takes its cues from light and darkness. This is why darkness triggers your body to switch off and fall asleep. When you are meditating, you want to remain alert to maintain focus. And natural light could help you with that.
- Make it your very own Zen space. You can light some incense sticks or aromatic candles to create a calming ritual around your meditation practice. A Buddha statue, some flowers, black stones and a couple of plants are also great to create a soothing vibe. And don’t forget your meditation cushion.
2. Download a meditation app
There are several good meditation apps with some great features to get you started.
I use Insight Timer, which has a meditation timer with Tibetan singing bowl sounds. If you don’t know what that is, check out the video below.
Browse through and select an app that feels right for you.
Here are some features to look out for.
- A timer. This will allow you to set your meditation time similar to an alarm and alert you when the time is up. I personally love the Tibetan singing bowl sound for this, which has a lovely calming resonance.
- Meditation music and guided sessions. These will become useful when you want a bit of a change as you go along.
- Progress trackers. Meditation apps will allow you to track your progress with various features, like saving your daily practice time, and online journals to write down notes. Daily journaling is an important part of meditation, as it helps you to reflect on your practice after each session. And some apps will allow you to set goals and see how you progress over weeks and months.
- A community of practitioners. Many people from across the world meditate each day by using an app. This can create a sense of community, making you part of a global community of meditators. Some apps will allow you to view how many others were meditating with you in real-time. These meditation communities are also a great way to share ideas with and draw inspiration from other practicing meditators just like you.
Meditating with so many people (literally, in thousands) from across the world all at the same time could be a very powerful and moving experience.
3. Fix a time
If you want to make meditation a habit, never plan to meditate whenever you find the time.
Instead, allocate a specific time dedicated to your daily practice. Then always meditate at the exact same time, every single day.
This helps to condition your mind to make it a part of your daily routine.
So, select a time that works best for you and when you are least disturbed. In the beginning, you may want to experiment with different parts of the day to help determine the most optimum time for you.
When I first started, I scheduled my meditation sessions for late evenings just before going to bed. I wanted it to be the last thing I did every day. But after a while, I switched to early mornings. Frankly, this has worked better for me since my mind is always clearer, relaxed and uncluttered soon as I wake up. Not to mention the early morning stillness, which could be very soothing.
4. Set easier goals
During the first couple of weeks, I meditated for only 2 minutes each day. That’s because 5 minutes felt like an eternity. So, 2 minutes was an easier goal for me as a beginner.
Then, instead of forcing myself to increase it up to 5, I waited until I truly felt that I needed more. Then 5 became 10 slowly and steadily. And so it continued.
Set easier goals and allow yourself time to adjust. Small incremental steps can go a long way before you know it.
How fast you progress in your meditation practice is part of your own unique journey. Meditation is not a competition, and you are not up against anyone to win a prize.
So take it easy and savor each moment. Take small incremental steps, which could help put your mind at ease, allowing you to progress naturally at your own speed.
5. Sit every day, no matter what
As you first begin to meditate, the excitement will keep you going. But as time goes by, your inner self-talk will start kicking in with lots of excuses, just like it does when you’re trying to form any other habit. (Nobody said it’s going to be easy). Then there will be times when something pops up to disrupt your daily routine, like work or travel.
Excuses, whether real or not, are the number one reason for failing to form habits.
So don’t allow anything to get in the way of your daily practice.
If your schedule is genuinely disrupted due to an unavoidable event, adjust your meditating time; you can slightly bring it forward or even push it back. And on a rare day, you might have to meditate as you sit at the airport trying to catch a flight, or at the hospital waiting for your appointment. But that’s ok.
And if you are plagued with self-negating excuses that are inhibiting your motivation, zap them by the root. And force yourself to sit.
The keyword here is sit. “Sit” regardless of whether you genuinely meditate or not. There will be days where your mind runs wild. And that’s ok too. It’s part of the journey. What is more important to develop the habit of meditation at the beginning is that you sit every day, no matter what.
Enjoy it… like a mini-break.
Remember, there will be many good days and a few bad days… expect them.
Is it going to be smooth sailing? Not at all.
But is it worth it? Oh, absolutely.
(This article first appeared in Medium)
