How meditation is an investement (that pays off) ?
Like a lot of people, my image of meditation was someone sitting cross-legged with their eyes closed. And they’re thinking nothing. Very woo-woo. And impossible. And stereotypical. And a waste of time. If I’d think of meditation as a series of daily mental excercises instead, I might have cut it a bit of slack. Because it’s basically what it is.
»It’s difficult to invest into something so out there as sitting down and doing nothing.«
Still, it may feel difficult for you to find a couple of minutes daily for meditation. I’m sure you have a busy life. We think how we think, right? So it’s naturally difficult to invest into something so abstract and out there as sitting down and doing nothing. But you know, investing those 5-10 minutes will bring at least 1-2 additional hours of awareness to your day (probably more as you continue to practice), time that would otherwise be spent surfing through your thoughts. On average, people spend 40% of their waking time lost in though. So don’t worry about how much time you spend sleeping, it’s the time that we’re fully engaged in our own internal world, that’s keeping us from experiencing more of our days. We mostly don’t realize when we wander off - amongst other things, meditation teaches us to recognize those moments and return to being present, back to the moment that we’re actually in. Ok, great, but why does sitting down & not moving still sound stupid?
The honest fact is, it may always sound stupid. Sometimes, even amidst meditation. And »thinking nothing« can seem as illusive as ever. But you’re still there. You’re showing up. And by showing up daily, you start to pick things up from your practices. The »am I doing this right« self-doubt does dissolve over time. You learn to see your thoughts apart from the actual you, not caring anymore if meditation ever seemed woo-woo. You learn that, with some techniques and over time, you can truly calm down enough to think »nothing« (or rather, stop reacting to thoughts and just observe). Being more present, focused, kinder, patient and most importantly, less-self oriented, aren’t too bad side-effects to sitting down and closing your eyes, right? My mind, before I discovered meditation, was a machine gun of thoughts. And I jumped on every single one: I was disoriented, unfocused, and sure that this was how all minds/thoughts work. I identified with my thoughts and emotions. Because that was my experience. Meditation helped me shift that perspective.
»a bit of woo-woo every day«
Almost two years ago, the trick that helped me get started was to give/reward myself with 10 minutes daily. Ten minutes where I wasn’t expecting anything of myself or the world. Ten minutes where, through guided excercises, I just practiced being present and less reactive. Instead of approaching meditation to get somewhere, we can let it teach us to be here. Here and now is actually much nicer than made up realities that each of us carries in our heads. They are not the things that are actually happening. And a bit of woo-woo every day helps us remember and cherish that. Meditation is not just about sitting down, closing your eyes and thinking nothing. It’s about repeating excercises that train awareness. It’s about learning to let go. And it’s about opening your eyes after an excercise to find positive change in yourself. A change that you can carry into your day and share it with others. Even if you don’t cross your legs.