Not sure about you, but I had grappled with meditation for years. I never really ‘got it’. Was there some magic formula or zen like approach I was missing out on?
On top of that, I didn’t quite get how meditation would transfer into my day when I needed it most… I mean… I still lost my shit from time to time. Was this normal? It was safe to say I was letting my mind get in my own way.
I couldn’t shake my curiosity. So over several years I went on a quest (and also leveraged my podcast 180 Nutrition – The Health Sessions). It led me to some fantastic discoveries and true scientists in this field; Dr Joe Dispenza, scientist Gregg Braden, developmental biologist Dr Bruce Lipton, NASA physicist Tom Campbell, coach Chris Tate, neuroscientist Jeffry Fannin… I even hung without an Indian Guru for a weekend.
I quickly began to have deeper understanding of this work, how it relates to us directly and how if applied correctly, can have a direct impact on our day and our long-term direction in life.
But here’s the biggest key…. Are you ready? Just start! Don’t wait for the perfect style, the perfect season or even the perfect reason. Just start! I PROMISE YOU the rest will start to take shape later.
1. Find a Big Enough ‘WHY’
I know this sounds a bit cryptic, but until I had a big enough ‘WHY’ I should make meditation a daily habit, I always struggled to commit. The problem with meditation is that there’s no instant gratification. And if it ain’t instant, it easily sits with the ‘I’ll do it tomorrow instead’ brigade.
So how did I make my ‘WHY’ big enough to make it a daily practice once and for all?
I flipped my perspective on meditation. I heard countless times of super successful people acknowledging meditation as a key component to their success. Do I want my company 180 Nutrition to be as successful as it can be? My relationships? My health? Of course! Instead of telling myself ‘how hard’ it is or ‘is it really worth it?’. I started telling myself ‘what if I don’t do it, could I be holding myself back?’.
I then submersed myself in education and started listening to podcasts and reading up on all sorts of benefits to why we should meditate. From professional athletes visualising their success before they had won to ex navy seals having a zen like approach to life. I began to get pumped! All of a sudden I felt like I was missing out. It became more painful to me if didn’t start to meditate, than to actually give it a go for a week. Some standout books that helped my cause and can highly recommend are Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself by Dr Joe Dispenza and Into the Magic Shop by Dr James Doty.
Light Bulb Moment #1 – I Flipped My Perspective
2. Form the Habit First
Uh? How can this make sense? Well, hear me out. One of the best things I could have done to make my meditation practice consistent was become an expert at meditation for 1-2 minutes every morning.
I was attempting one off guru like 20 minute sessions where my thoughts ran off in all directions like wild stallions. This got me frustrated really quickly and I would throw it in the ‘all too hard basket’ and give up. I lost all morale very quickly and it would be weeks before I would attempt it again.
Then one day a very passionate meditator named Jon Gabriel told me; “Guy, stop trying to meditate like a buddhist monk and start with 1-2 minutes a day. Just sit there in silence and focus on your breathing”.
That’s it? Yep, and it was gold! I had instantly removed all pressure from myself. I committed to every day indefinitely for 2 minutes (I even set a timer). If I couldn’t commit to this, then clearly my ‘Why’ wasn’t big enough. This formed the habit for me and after several months, I slowly expanded the time that I sat there for my meditation.
Light Bulb Moment #2 – Habits come first, outcome comes later
3. Be Organised
When meditation is a ‘should’ and not a ‘MUST’ in your life, I realised it was very easy to find reasons not to meditate when I got up first thing in the morning.
I started meditating on the edge of my bed at first, but it was waaaay to easy to lay back down and catch a few extra minutes sleep. Then my next bright idea was to meditate in the living room. So when I got up I’d fumble around in the dark for my warm cloths which I couldn’t find, then I’d sit on the end of the couch but it was too low (I’m tall) and I was uncomfy, then I wasn’t warm enough, then the aeroplanes flying over would distract me, and on and on and on this went… I was great at finding many reasons not to meditate and put it off until the next day.
I was amazed at how much these small barriers affected me first thing in the morning. Determined to turn my 2 minute practice into a 5 minute practice, I started to look at my barriers and figure out simple solutions and prepare them the night before. From having an elevated chair ready to go in the morning with a blanket on it, to folding my trackie pants a certain way so I didn’t have to think when I put them on in the morning, I was getting myself prepared. In a strange way, preparing the night before with meticulous precision made it feel like a ritual. This got me excited as I felt much more in control and ready for the morning meditation.
Light Bulb Moment #3 – Being organised removes barriers & excuses
4. Set Yourself A Challenge
For me personally, this is one of the most powerful things I can do for myself which turns up the dial up on the motivation factor. Make a commitment with a deadline that’s hard to back out of. So how did I bring that into my meditation routine? Great question!
Last year, we had neuroscientist Dr Joe Dispenza on our podcast and he blew our minds with what he had to say. So a few weeks later, I booked in to do his 2 day progressive workshop (commitment). Needless to say, this was incredible and I was hungry for more. But some of Joe’s meditations are anywhere between 20 minutes and an hour! How am I going to fit that into my busy day? I was torn between this new commitment (as I wanted to feel the benefits) or coming up with a few excuses and put it off.
I brewed on it for a few days, then I decided to book myself into his advanced 5 day workshop in Mexico which was 3 months away (deadline). They were flying in scientists to measure the effects on the brain and the body for a study and I didn’t want to miss out. But the thought of meditating from 1-4 hours in this study made me feel REALLY uncomfortable as I couldn’t sit still for 20 minutes.
I booked the ticket, bought the flights and I was committed with 3 months and counting. Things got serious and psychologically there was shift. I turned a ‘maybe’ into a ‘must’ and it gave me the motivation I needed to commit every morning.
Light Bulb Moment #4 – Set yourself a challenge to truly commit
5. Detach From Outcome
I know this sounds a bit ‘Yoda’, but trust me on this one as it’s probably the most powerful thing you can do for your meditation practice. When I started my daily meditation practice, I was constantly analysing everything I was doing; am I doing this right? What’s the end goal? Why do I have stressful days still? Get the picture?
It wasn’t until I ‘let go’ and changed my attitude around it did the magic start to happen. I compared it to when I first joined a gym many years ago. My only motivation at the time was I wanted to build lean muscle and drop body fat so I looked good with my top off! I was constantly pushing myself to train harder and checking every day to see if my body had changed at all. In time this phase passed and I was enjoying how much my body felt physically and mentally daily. My fixation on my body image results drifted away and I was simply enjoying the habits of exercising regular and didn’t think about it too much. Then one day a few months later I realised that my body shape had changed. Bonus!
To this day, exercise is simply a good habit that I enjoy and I don’t worry at all about the outcome. Meditation for me needed to have the same attitude, and the moment I stopped fixating on the outcome, I truly started to enjoy the process and feel the benefits..
Light Bulb Moment #5 – Enjoy the process, don’t fixate on the result
Conclusion:
I hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did writing it. I honestly don’t think there’s a right way to go about meditation, except what works for you. Go easy on yourself and do what feels right. There’s no rush. This a lifestyle not a destination.
Reaping the benefits of meditation is certainly a long term approach and there are no short cuts. But if you persevere, I promise you the rewards are priceless.
Ps. Whenever you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help begin to create lasting change in your life with this work.
1. Grab my free Daytime Reset Meditation
This is the very thing I do daily. And it only takes 7 minutes! The benefits are endless and a swear by it. DO NOT underestimate the power of this simple process– Click Here
2. Subscribe to my podcast. It’s completely free
Here I have conversations that go well beyond conventional health, wealth and wisdom to inspire us to be the best versions of ourselves daily. Guests include world leading experts in this field of work. Join my newsletter to stay up to date or… Subscribe on: iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | Youtube
3. Join our Let It In Academy & connect with others who implement this work
This is where the rubber meets the road. Be part of a supportive community and also have direct access to me. This is a proven program to demystify meditation and help create transformation from the inside out – Click Here