How Can Beginners Start a Daily Meditation Practice
Congratulations on taking the decision not to settle with having a stressful mind.
Learning to meditate is about more than just learning to sit still with your eyes closed. It’s about learning to be present and to see things as they really are. Our constant thoughts, judgments, and opinions are like a fog that obscures our view of reality. The more we meditate and the more aware we become of our thoughts, the less we unconsciously and incessantly think. This lifts the fog and we begin to experience all of life with peace, wonder and joy.
The more we turn our attention inward, the more we see how our own mind works. We become experts of our own psychology and we stop generating mental suffering. Our focus, patience, and mindfulness increase and we start generating greater love, purpose, fulfillment and compassion in our lives.
Take care of your mental health because a peaceful mind is the first step to reaching your full potential. Just a few small, simple daily habits will lead to a significant change in your personal and professional life.
Meditation & Its Benefits
What is Meditation?
Meditation is our natural state of being. It is a state of being totally present and alert. We are mindful or ourselves and our surroundings. It is a state of complete inner peace and joy.
Ever since humans began farming and settling down, we lost this way of being. Instead of being present, we had to obsess about past crop cycles and plan for future harvests. Later, as industries began to crop up, such as news and entertainment, our minds became even more dislocated from the here and now.
This gave rise to the practice of meditation — a simple, easy practice where we spend a few minutes being present and alert by turning our attention inward and focusing on our breath, our body, or a mantra.
Why Meditation is Important?
By meditating daily and making a habit of being present and aware, we start to see things more clearly, think more clearly, we focus and concentrate better, our actions become more mindful, negative habits are diminished, we appreciate the little things, we see what needs to be done and we do it joyfully and effortlessly.
Our stress goes down and even our physical health improves. It is quite truly the only thing that leads to a peaceful, calm, and stress-free mind. Meditating is easy, anyone can do it, and when you see the benefits from it you’ll wonder why you didn’t start doing it sooner.
Ideal Time For Meditation
When Should I Meditate?
There is really no wrong time to meditate. The best time is the time that works for your schedule.
Many new meditators find that first thing in the morning is best because there are fewer disruptions, it is a great way to start the day, and it easily becomes part of your morning routine.
Do I Have to Meditate Daily? Even If I Have a Busy Schedule?
Like anything in life, the more effort you put in the more you get back. The same is true for meditation.
When it comes to meditation for beginners, it is important not to be hard on yourself if something comes up and you miss a day. Incorporate meditation into your daily habits with love, gentleness and positivity.
I know it can seem like we are all so busy these days. But very busy people, such as Jack Dorsey (CEO of two publicly traded companies) who meditates for 2 hours everyday, report feeling like they have more time in a day because they are so much more productive and focused.
Many daily meditators have reported that they wake up 20 minutes earlier than normal to meditate, but thanks to the 20 minutes of deeply restful meditation, they have much more energy throughout the day and need less sleep.
Every single person on earth has the time to meditate. It’s about making it a priority. If you try to find the time, you won’t. You have to make time.
Getting Started With Meditation
How Can Beginners Prepare For Their First Meditation?
While it’s possible to meditate anytime and anywhere, here are a few tips for beginners to make your first few times as easy and comfortable as possible.
1) Find a peaceful place and respectfully ask not to be disturbed
2) Sit on a comfortable chair or on some pillows on the floor
3) Have a clock, watch, or timer nearby
4) Don’t be too full, too thirsty, and be sure to use the restroom beforehand
Below are the answers of some of the common questions beginners have:
Which Meditation Type to Choose?
While different types offer different advantages, I believe in a progressive approach to meditation. Start with a simple and easy type, then once your focus and awareness have reached a certain level, you progress to a more skilled and beneficial type.
Often, when people try a more advanced technique without first having the basics down, they give up. I certainly did numerous times. But since I stumbled upon this progressive approach, I haven’t miss a day.
What Should I Wear For Meditation?
Luckily, there is no dress code for meditating. If you wear clothes, make sure they are comfortable when sitting down and not too tight.
Your body may heat up or get cold, so don’t be dressed too warmly and be sure to have a blanket on hand just in case. It is not uncommon for your body temperature to rise in meditation.
If you like to go deeper, you may try meditating in all cotton or some other all-natural, or even organic, fabrics. These reconnect us to the earth and remind us of our oneness with all living things.
How Should I Sit For Meditation?
When starting out, sit however is most comfortable for you without dozing off. That may be a chair, the floor or even in bed with your head propped up by a few pillows.
Keep your teeth slightly separated and your jaw unclenched. You may rest your tongue where the front, upper teeth meet the roof of the mouth.
Over time and if your physicality allows it, you may wish to sit in the more alert position of either full or half lotus pose, also known as Indian style. This position is done on the floor, on a couple pillows if you like, with legs crossed and a straight back. Hands are placed folded in your lap or palms on your knees.
Some people prefer sitting on their knees with their heels against their bottom. This is also a fantastic position.
Some people enjoy placing their hands in certain positions known as “mudras.” These have been passed down for thousands of years and are believed to have certain energetic properties. Palm up and connecting the forefinger to the thumb is the most famous of mudras.
There is no wrong seating posture for meditation for beginners. Be sure to listen to your body.
Should I Have a Goal Before Meditation?
We all have intentions and motivations for why we do what we do. It’s important to set your intentions consciously for your first meditation and to remember your motivations.
Focusing on your reasons for meditating will help you get through difficult times in your journey when you may not feel like meditating, in case you’ve had a setback of some kind, or if you’re having a particularly tough time in your life.
The goals, reasons, intentions and motivations will be different for each person. They may include achieving greater patience or peace, less stress or anger, more focus or creativity, better health and happiness.
How Long Should I Meditate?
For some people, meditating for 10 seconds or a minute might be all they can do when first starting out. Luckily, there is science to back up that just a few seconds can provide numerous benefits to the mind and body.
Over time, try working your way up a few seconds or minutes each day or week. Eventually, 20 to 30 minutes, once or twice a day will be enough to give you all of the extraordinary benefits meditation can provide. A number of scientific studies show that just 20 minutes a day leads to significantly greater joy, patience, focus, and quality of life.
Getting Started With Meditation
Below are some perfect guided meditations for (beginners) anyone who’s new to meditation. You’ll learn the correct techniques and proper form to build a solid foundation for your journey to a peaceful, stress-free and calm mind.
Guided Morning Meditation For Beginners
Start everyday off right with this short and simple guided morning meditation.
Benefits can be experienced after the first session or within a few weeks or months. Once you have noticed a difference in your life, you may wish to move on to our more advanced meditation & mindfulness videos on YouTube.
Meditation FAQs for Beginners
Is There a Wrong Way of Meditation?
The only wrong way to meditate is to not meditate. Some types of beginners’ meditations have certain benefits and others may have different ones.
But if you take the time to turn your attention inward, you will gain insight and understanding into the nature of your mind and the world around you.
Why Do I Feel Restless While Meditating?
Most of us since birth have experienced a life in which every single moment is dedicated to one activity or another. To sit down and remove all distractions is a rather a strange and unusual experience for most of us at first.
Whether you have restless leg syndrome, Restless Mind Syndrome™, or you’re just feeling a bit restless in meditation, this video is for you. More on this here.
What If I Can’t Sit Still And My Mind Always Wanders?
Then you’re completely normal! This is true of almost everyone who begins meditation. It is due to the conditioning of our modern society, and the reason meditation is needed now more than ever.
Today we have more luxuries and conveniences than ever before, but also more depression and suicide and mental health afflictions as well. This is because we are used to always putting our attention outward and we have become disconnected with ourselves.
