How to start your meditation practice? Just do it!

So you are motivated to start your first meditation, but somehow you can't get yourself to sit down on a cushion and to close your eyes? Here is a little secret that the NIKE brand has used for decades as a marketing slogan: "Just do it!". There is no away around pushing yourself over the edge to get the deed done.

Here are 8 tips, how to get yourself over the hump:

1) Make a strong resolve to do a meditaton today.

Right after you wake up and get up out bed, think about the things you want to achieve today. And make sure you include meditation in your planning. It could be something like this: "Today, I want to sit down and meditate."

2) Pick a specific time, when you want to meditate.

When you do the strong resolve, make sure you include a specific time, when you want to do it. So it should be something like: "I want to meditate today, when I get back home after work." or "I want to meditate at 10 p.m.". Being specific helps your brain to get used to the idea of meditating at that specific time. Being vague about the time only helps one part in your brain: the one that does not want you to sit down.

3) Pick a spot where you meditate. And make it inviting and a bit special.

After you made a strong resolve about the time you should pick a spot. A secluded space would be ideal. Like a room that can be locked where you can be for yourself for the time of meditation. If your plan is to meditate more than once, you could also start to prepare your own meditation place or corner. It could be a seat with a small cabinet in front of you, which has a candle or flowers on it. Some people like to put a Buddha figure on there. Or it could also be a picture of a teacher, that is close to your heart. It could also just be a postcard with a saying on it, that motivates you. Incence sticks might be nice too. For sitting down, you can use a meditation cushion, if you have one. If not, a regular chair is fine, too. However you design your space, it should make on thing clear: this is the space, that will become synonymous with meditation only. First your mind will connect this place with it. And your body will follow soon after. I personally started out with a small space in my living room, with a candle and flowers on it. Now I do have a little stool with Buddha statue on it, a framed bodhi tree leave, a small candle and I usually burn incence sticks. My favourite incense sticks are the quite easy to get and very cheap GoldenNag Chandan* that have a sandal wood smell, that I just really like. They are not the most natural incense sticks to be honest, but I somehow stumbled over them and don't want to miss them. Another fun thing about them is, that I sometimes just carry a small package with me in my suitcase when travelling. They smell so much, that I don't even have to light them to have the smell support my practice. That is perfect when you stay in hotels and lighting incense sticks would cause a fire alarm to go off.

4) Tell someone about your medtation plans. And make sure you are not disturbed during that time.

If you are one of the persons, who needs peer pressure to get an extra boost of motivtion, go tell your partner, friend, neighbour or colleague about your meditation plans. You are more likely to do something, if there is a chance that this person might ask you later how it went. Nobody wants to admit they didn't do something they said they would do. If you live together with someone, tell your friend, partner or kids also when you want to meditate, so they are informed and will not disturbe you during.

6) Get a meditation app - a clock with a timer function is fine, too.

In the beginning, it is very useful to start with guided meditations, that give you clear instructions. You can start out with one of the numerous meditation apps for your phone, like Insight Timer, headspace or 7mind. My personal favorite is Insight Timer. It's been the go to app since my beginnings and I do not see me change the app anytime soon. If you don't want to to use an app, of course a timer is fine as well.

7) Tread lightly and start with 5 minutes. It's a marathon and not a sprint.

When picking up something new and you are motivated, it is natural to somehow overshoot the target. Like starting running and soon setting the goal to run 5 k per day. For some people that might be motivating. But reality for most people is, that they do more, than their body can handle and then have to stop due to fatigue. The same applies for meditation. Don't overdo it. But also don't underdo it. So when you start out, 5 minutes of sitting down is totally fine. Which meditation method you choose is totally up to you. Now is your time!

8) Congratulate yourself. You've done it!

So somehow you had issues focusing on your breath? Or your body? Your mind wandered all over the place? No worries. You are not alone. And your mind is just not used to this kind of "work" yet. Most importantly: Be kind to yourself. If you are kind to yourself, the likelihood increases that you can establish a positive feedback loop. Meditation should not be something you have to drag yourself to. Well. Sometimes it does feel like a dentist appointment, I wont't lie. But you will experience for yourself what meditation can do for you. If you keep on going you can build in more time outs in your life. And maybe this was the first of many meditations in your life.

With Metta
Buddhist Teachings

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Comments

AnonymousNovember 2, 2022 at 7:11 PM
Dear Buddhist Teachings: Really nice tips, especially the parts about setting a clear intention for a time and a place to do it, and about communicating the plan to others. What advice do you have, if you share a very small space with another person (or people) that has (have) things to do while you are meditating? How do you navigate a small shared space while respecting the needs of both (or all) people?
Buddhist TeachingsNovember 2, 2022 at 11:49 PM
Dear reader,
first of all thank you for the comment and your question about how to deal with setting up a meditation space for a small space environment. I have a few ideas, that might help you there. The most recommended idea from my side would be to align the interests of you and your flat mates and make meditation a common experience. In this way you might be able to kill 2 birds with one stone. You have a strong commitment to do the meditation and you have a quiet environment while doing it. :-) Second idea would be to retreat to your room and tell your flat mates that you need 5 minutes of real quiet without loud noises. You mentioned, that people have "things to do". I assume that washing dishes, vacuuming the flat or putting up pictures on a wall with a hammer can pause for 5 minutes. Maybe those people need a 5 minute cigarette break or coffee break as well? Third idea would be to find a time when people are simply gone. Fourth idea would be to do it outside in nature, like a forest, park or garden. Or even at work in a conference room or similar. If all those ideas before don't work you could try to use ear plugs or noise cancelling headphones to soften the noise level. And last but not least: if nothing works out for you, you can try to embrace the chaos and use the noises in your flat as a meditation object and start noting quickly whatever pops up in your head when a noise, smell, thought or feeling arises. May it be "anger" when a person who wanted to give you space and be quiet forgot about it and tries to talk to you. Or just "talking" when you hear your room mate next door talking to someone on the phone. There is a quote by the Thai monk Ajahn Chah that nails it on the head: “Anything which is troubling you, anything which is irritating you, that is your teacher.” So after all, being irritated might help you figure out what it is, that rubs you the wrong way, and why. And then you can let it go down the road. But dont get me wrong. I would prefere a quiet and peaceful space any day. ;-)
I do hope that one of the ideas might help you navigate a small space environment.
With Metta
Buddhist Teachings

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