What are the best ways to maintain a daily meditation practice?

Meditating wants you to meditate more - it is a chicken and egg story. The more you meditate, your self would automatically want to meditate more without forcing yourself into a mediation schedule. Start meditating even while doing regular daily activities. Observe your breath while walking, reading, eating or any activity. This is free you from sticking to a forced schedule, and gradually you will notice that you automatically want to meditate more. It is addictive.

Many people over complicate Meditation and have various associations to the word. They often focus on getting it right, whatever that means and give up because they feel they are not getting it, not knowing that with meditation like anything else there are good and bad days. The key is starting small, keeping it simple (like breath awareness or focusing on one point such as a candle flame), and not trying to do much each day. With each meditation our blade of focus becomes sharper and that will be reflecting in our day to day actions. Major key: Don’t overthink it and allow for the skill to be developed over time.

Creating the space in our mind for meditation Fixing a time, as per your personal schedule. Sticking to the earmarked time. Focussing on nothingness. Starting from 5 minutes, moving to 10 mins,to finally 15 minutes, regular meditation of 15 minutes,is sufficient. To blank out your mind, sometimes, is tough, hence, we say let the thoughts come and go, don't hold on to them.

Meditation is nothing but Awareness, of Breath thoughts actions ( vocal, physical, reactions) not focus or chanting or visualization without any expectations of benefits. satvik or healthy food helps ( no animal products, spicy or processed) anytime of day or night is good, specially when we are very quite or disturbed posture can be straightened by soft cushion below , for experienced distractions of sound can be used in meditation while working on observing body sensations. Metta ( peace, light, joy be with All )

The thing is to get started. Talking about it has no effect. Set a time according to your preference and schedule and stick to it. Do not allow anything else to interfere and do not keep changing the time around. This helps create a pattern of this action, and a commitment within. Be determined to do this as all other distractions will ramp up to distract you. Be consistent, be vigilant and be open...make sure everyone knows this is your time for your practice. Period.

It is essential to start small for sure. Use a guided meditation initially while you develop your own. Or use a calming sound meditation to help quiet the mind. The goal here is to learn to allow the mental process to teach you where your awareness is going when it bombards you with other thoughts. You will be bombarded so do not give up. Be gradual, be forgiving and be vigilant with this. The noise will lessen in volume and you will begin to hear the sound of the univers.

Ein zu hoher Anspruch zu Beginn der Praxis kann ein riesiges Hindernis sein. Es geht nicht darum jeden Tagen gleich eine halbe Stunde zu meditieren, beginne lieber mit 5-10 Minuten, mache die aber regelmäßig. Setzen wir uns zu hohe Ziele, die wir dann nicht erreichen, sind wir demotiviert und lassen es häufig ganz bleiben, deshalb klein anfangen und die Erfolge feiern.

Make it impossible to say no to. When Stanford Behavioural Lab studied how to get people to floss, the answer was say. .floss one tooth. Similarly, I make it three breaths with all my clients and myself. It is too easy not to do.

Follow your instinct and don't force it. I believe there is a lot of noise around a meditation having to be of a certain length. Some days, it will be 5 minutes, some days you would need 10 minutes. Meditation is all about listening to oneself, don't put boundaries to s practice that should be self guided and organic. This is my opinion from 10 years of experience doing it.

In this, remember that it is not the time, place or technique that matters. What matters is that you inhabit this space and make it your own. Your way is the right way. In fact, it is possible, over time, to meditate when you go for your walk, while doing the dishes or other chores, as meditation is connected with your level of awareness, or what you are aware of at the time. It is not a religious practice and the reward is your heightened level of awareness. Look for that, what you become aware of. You will also find the benefits of calmness, centeredness, and peace as a measurement.

Das was du am wenigsten brauchen kannst, wenn sich deine Pläne durchkreuzen ist Selbstabwertung und Selbstkritik. Achtsamkeit heißt mitfühlend mit dir selbst sein. Also verurteile dich nicht dafür, dass du es heute nicht geschafft hast oder dir die Praxis für dein Gefühl nicht gelungen ist oder du in der Meditation stark abgelenkt warst. Dies alles sind die Gewichte, wie in einem Fitnessstudio, die unseren Meditationsmuskel stärken. Bleib freundlich und liebevoll mit dir.

Meditationsgruppen können eine große Unterstützung in der Meditationspraxis sein. Wissen mit seinen Problemen und Herausforderungen in der Meditation nicht alleine zu sein, kann sehr entlastend sein. Ebenso hilft die Energie der Gruppe oder die Unterstützung des/der Meditationslehrer:in dich tiefer einzulassen. Ebenso bekommst du Antworten auf Fragen und hilfreiche Impulse, die deine Praxis unterstützen und vertiefen werden.

Your environment will make it or break it. Your support network is the most important piece. Align your people with your WHY and they will help you build the consistency you need.

In my journey with Transcendental Meditation (TM), I've valued its personalised instruction from accredited teachers, although it can require a significant investment to get started. Practising TM has been enriching, but I find maintaining twice-daily sessions challenging even after five years. TM also offers a unique community and support aspect. It's important to remember it's just one of many meditation paths, each with its own merits, and doing something different is better than nothing.

A simple meditation card without dates and just checkboxes can be a fun way to track your progress. The concept of tracking without dates is helpful to detach from a critical or judgmental voice if you miss a day or two. It is important to give yourself space to return to the practice even if you have not kept it up regularly.

Acknowledging how it makes you feel is the best way to celebrate. Reflect on the outcome. Is not a task list on a check list. Is something you do with yourself and for yourself. Celebrate how it makes you feel.

Meditation can come in many ways of forms. The outcome is what should be taken into account. Meditation is a moment to be with yourself that should allow you to offer your best version to the ones around you.

Meditation is not a usual human practice in todays world. With the fast paced, hard work, make money ethic in the forefront, the benefits of meditation need to be measured on a different scale. It is not a contest, but something you do for yourself, to increase your awareness of the fact that you are alive in this world that is around you. Be aware of how your practice changes your worldview, affects your values and softens your hardness. These are all ways to measure whether this practice is effective for you. Adjustments need to be made and over time the benefits will greatly outweigh the frustration of trying to get it right.

Um eine tägliche Meditationspraxis aufrecht zu erhalten ist es zudem hilreich, deinen Meditationsplatz sichtbar einzurichten und wenn möglich bestehen/dein Kissen liegen zu lassen. Das visuelle Sehen des Platzes erinnert uns immer wieder daran und der Aufwand ist geringer, als wenn wir jedesmal z.B. unser gesamtes Zimmer umräumen müssen. Dies hilft deinem Gehirn Energie zu sparen.

Pair it with something. For instance, if you like to walk, do a walking meditation. Or in-between events and interactions, I call it a three-breath reset.

When you are new and wanting to keep your Practise consistent joining a group really helps. A Group supports each other to show up on time every day and it also normalizes the challenges one could face and help them with ways to handle it. Do not compare your experiences or look forward to having a similar experience everyday. Every day it can be different. Being curious and looking at it, as a time with yourself is more helpful.