You’ve imagined yourself sitting on a meditation cushion, a peaceful smile on your face, your body in a perfect lotus position. If somebody were to observe you they’d think you were a person full of peace and mindfulness.

The only problem is that you don’t meditate. You’re not even close to having a consistent meditation practice.

You’ve tried a few times, not quite sure if you were doing it right.  Then life got in the way and demanded that you stop sitting around and go do things.

Let this post be your wake-up call. You know that meditation is good for you, so I’m not going to bother with the scientific research.

Instead, I’ll give you a process that is destined to work if you follow it. It’s a 6 step action plan that will help you get into that lotus seat and meditate like a pro (or, at least sit still for a few minutes).

1. Fully commit to your daily practice

“99% is a bitch. 100% is a breeze.” – Jack Canfield

This is a very important step, maybe even the most important one in creating any new habit.

You must commit 100% to your meditation practice every single day. In doing so, you stop wasting time with procrastination. Meditation becomes as natural as brushing your teeth every day.

You know it’s good for you. You said you’ll do it. Now you’ll be doing it every single day. Because you promised it to yourself. And you won’t allow yourself to break any promises you’ve made to your precious self.

The act of committing yourself doesn’t have to be special. It’s enough to say, “I commit myself 100% to do 5 minutes of meditation every day. I’ll do it no matter what.”

2. Start small

Meditating can be pretty hard to bear in the beginning because your monkey mind can’t take being left alone and observed. He’ll come up with all kind of tactics to distract you and get your mind back into the chaos it’s used to.

Sitting still and calmly observing your thoughts is a real challenge at first. That’s why it’s important to start small. Don’t sit down with the intention to do more than 5 minutes in the beginning.  Thirty seconds might be a good place to start.

Of course, if you’re sitting there and find it easy to meditate, you can do more, but don’t sit down with the intention to do any more than 5 minutes. This way you’re going to be really proud of yourself if you do more than 5 minutes. If you don’t, you’ve still reached your quota for the day.

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3. An X a day makes good habits stay

Okay, I apologize for that obnoxious rhyme, but there is some truth in it.

I’m going to share a technique with you that was made popular by Jerry Seinfeld. He tells you to get yourself a calendar (or draw a very basic one on a piece of paper) and mark a big fat “X” every day you’ve stayed true to your commitment. Trust me, there is no such pleasure as drawing a big red X after you’ve done your meditation.

After a few days of consistent meditation, you’ll have a chain of red X‘s on your calendar. That has the nice side effect of you wanting to make the chain as long as possible. You’ll never want to break the chain. This is a very simple technique to hold yourself accountable and it’s highly effective.

4. Do it first thing in the morning

If you want to make sure that you’ll meditate every day, it’s a good idea to do it first thing in the morning. Include it in your morning routine. That way you won’t have much time to procrastinate which will make it more likely that you’ll actually do the meditation.

Sitting still for 5 minutes is a wonderful way to start the day. It allows your mind to wake up slowly. Do you know that feeling when you’re still half asleep when you arrive at work? That will be gone. Your mind will use those first 5 minutes to gently wake up and help you feel fully alert.

5. Ask someone to join you

This is what has done the trick for me, besides committing myself 100%. Ask one of your friends or someone you know who wants to get into meditation.

If you don’t have anyone that’s interested in meditation, ask them if they want to start a new habit with you. You don’t have to start creating the same habit to hold each other accountable.

Tell each other what you’re committed to start or stop doing and then text each other a quick “DONE” when you’ve reached your quota of the day. This is crucial as the text is a motivation to stay true to your commitment, especially when your friend has finished his quota before you. It’s also an easy way to hold each other accountable every day.

6. You can always begin again

Maybe you’ll miss a day. Maybe you skip a few in a row. Of course, that’s not the best scenario and it wouldn’t happen if you’re fully committed, but if it does, just know that you can always begin again.

Today is a new day and you can start a new chain right away. In a few days, you’ll be back on track. It will actually be easier this time around. The most important part is to not give up.

 

If you stick to this 6 step action plan, it’s hard to fail. You’ll establish your daily meditation habit and, sooner than you think, you’ll finally have some perspective on your raging monkey mind and have the ability to create some true inner peace. You could even create a special meditation place for yourself (I know, that’s what everybody thinks about during their first few sittings).

If you still don’t think that meditation is doable for you, let me help you out and give you the very basics about meditation as a little bonus.

If you can breathe you can meditate

A lot of people think that you have to say fancy mantras or do some other complicated things to meditate. While you can use mantras if you like, the beginner‘s version is to simply focus on your breathing.

First, sit in any of these simple meditation postures. The only thing to keep in mind is to have your back straight so your breath can flow in and out effortlessly.

Focus on your breathing. Maybe take a few deep breaths before you start to let your breath flow naturally and start observing it. You can say “in” and “out” or “1, 2” if you want to. But beware of counting continuously because that will get you in contest mode (“Look how many counts I have already…oh wait, I’ve been distracted.”)

Sit still and when any thoughts arrive, observe them without judgment. Return to your breathing whenever you’ve caught yourself being distracted, which will actually be most of the time. You’ll think about all kinds of things from the piles of laundry that need to be washed to the meaning of life. That’s okay and totally normal.

Remember you don’t have to solve any problems or figure anything out during your meditation. Just sit still and enjoy the silence.

If your monkey mind doesn’t allow you to sit peacefully, rest assured that it will get better in time.

That’s it. Remember to sit with your back straight, focus on your breathing and don’t be harsh to yourself if you find yourself distracted. Instead, release the thought and go back to breathing.

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Do you have any other excuses? When will you start meditating? And if you already have a regular meditation practice, let me know how you finally made it a habit.

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Create the life you want: Combine the law of attraction with mindfulness

The law of attraction suggests that our positive or negative thoughts bring about positive or negative experiences.  My latest book, The Mindful Guide to Law of Attraction, pairs that belief with the powerful practices of mindfulness. Through intentional breathing, writing, and engaging, you’ll hone a method for manifesting health, wealth, and love―the elements of happiness.

Let the law of attraction work for you by adopting its basic steps of identifying and visualizing the things you desire. Then use 45 practical meditation techniques included in the book to achieve awareness. By concentrating your positive energy on obtaining your wants, you’ll give yourself permission to receive them.

To your happiness!  ~Paige

The Mindful Guide to the Law of Attraction  

You can find this book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, and Indigo.