What Does Meditation Plug Into?

Please read the title again. I’m not talking about some sort of hardware plug here. I’m not talking about some sort of device sticking into some sort of slot. Instead, I’m talking about how meditation plugs into your mental processes. You have to understand that meditation is not a mystical activity. It is not an activity that requires religion, mysticism or spirituality. 

 

In fact, even though many strains of meditation and mindfulness practices can be traced to religion, the essence of this practice is plugged into your mind. The human mind is universal. People all over the world, regardless of what they look like, the color of their skin, how much money they make or their body type, are the same, mentally speaking. 

 

We all have the same hardware. What separates us is the software choices we make. Meditation is so powerful because it plugs into how the human mind operates off the shelf. If you were to clear out all the cultural programming that you have and if you were to eliminate all the residues of economics and history in your life, you would have raw processing mental power and this is the same across the board. 

 

This is what mediation plugs into. It connects with how your mind is already operating. The big difference is you learn how to make your mind work for you, instead of against you. You have to understand that people who are very successful or who seem to have the world by the tail are not physically different from you. 

 

In fact, there’s a good chance that you are physically superior to Bill Gates. Still, he has more money than you can ever imagine. Now, you might be thinking to yourself, “Okay, that’s Bill Gates. He was born with all sorts of advantages and I wasn’t. It’s not fair to compare me to Bill Gates because he’s able to achieve a lot of stuff and I’m barely getting by.” 

 

Well, you’re more than welcome to think that. You’re more than welcome to choose that mindset. But the more you choose that mindset, the more you will remain stuck. You have to understand that what other people can do, you can do if you make the right choices. It all boils down to mental clarity. 

 

This is just the fancy way of saying that you have to let your mental processes operate and flow in such a way that they will enable you to turn a lot more of your ideas into reality. I’m not talking about hoping and wishing here. I’m not talking about hoping against hope, that somehow, some way, something good will happen. That’s not what I’m talking about. 

 

Those are fantasies. People who engage in that kind of mental pattern barely lift a finger to change their circumstances. They remain stuck, and rightfully so, because they hang on to that type of programming. What I’m talking about is to use how your mind is already actually operating so you can turn a lot more of your ideas into goals and from goals, you turn them into plans. 

 

When you’re able to do this, you successfully bridge the divide that separates ideas from reality. That’s right. You can turn the things that you think about into things that you can see, touch, taste, smell and hear. In other words, you can turn them into reality. That’s how powerful focus is. One of the best ways to achieve that level of focus is to adopt some sort of meditation or mindfulness practice. 

 

Is Meditation Just a Tool?

There is a lot of misconception regarding meditation. As meditation and other forms of mindfulness continue to grow in the American and Western European imagination, it’s going to continue to run into a whole range of misconceptions. One of the most common objections people have to meditation is that is some sort of religious experience. That somehow, some way, if you practice meditation or meditation paired with yoga, you are basically converted into a different religion. 

 

Of course, there are many different layers of intentionality to this. Some people are saying that, the moment you meditate, you are consciously trying to become a Hindu or a Buddhist. Other people say that even though you don’t intend to follow these spiritual paths, that’s exactly what you’re doing in practice. 

 

Both of these ideas are wrong. You have to understand that meditation is not a destination in of itself. This is where all these misconceptions get it wrong. They think that you’re meditating because you want to be spiritual. Meditation, in their eyes, is a goal. This is wrong. Meditation is a tool.

 

When you buy a hammer, it’s not because hammers mean the world to you. It’s because you want to nail something to the wall. Similarly, if you buy a saw, it’s because you are a big fan of saws from all over the world. Instead, you buy a saw because you’re trying to cut some wood. The same applies to meditation. 

 

While there is quite a bit of elegance and beauty in the different practices and steps that make up meditation, at the end of the day, it is just a tool. That’s all it is. It’s something that you use to get to where you want to go. What is this ultimate destination? Well, it’s all about personal clarity. If you are feeling stuck, frustrated, discouraged, in any way, shape or form, it’s because of your thought patterns. 

 

Would it be great to think in such a way that the whole world opens up to you? It’s as if everything that you have found confusing, challenging, or even downright outrageous, about your life, has somehow become clear. That’s precisely the kind of mental and emotional state you can achieve with meditation. 

 

It does this without resorting to some sort of hocus pocus or magic. This is not some sort of religious activity. Instead, meditation really is a set of practices, discovered throughout thousands of years, that tie into how our minds work. Now, wrap your mind around that phrase. I said “how our minds work,” as in how it currently works, not how it could work or how it should work. 

 

I’m talking about how it currently works, right here, right now. The reason why people struggle and are dealing with all sorts of past traumas and worries is because they let their mind work against them instead of for them. Your mind is just a tool. You are always in control. You shape your world with your choices and how you think impacts your choices. 

 

Meditation is a tool for clarifying your thinking processes. You become aware of your decisions. You become aware of your ability to choose. You become aware of the impact of how you choose to think has an impact on your world. That is real power. But meditation in of itself is not the destination. That is not the goal, so don’t get it twisted. 

 

Use it for the tool that it is, so you can take your life to the next level. 

 

Choose Your Goals Wisely

Goal setting is something that a lot of people simply don’t really understand. That is to say that they take the entire wrong approach to it, which in turn results in them never seeing the results that they hoped to see.

 

There are lots of things we could improve about goal setting, but for now we’re going to look at one thing specifically that relates to the Japanese concept of “kaizen.”

That is: being too ambitious right away.

 

Now, just to be clear, there is nothing wrong with ambition. There is nothing wrong with deciding your goal is to become president of the United States, to have the best body that anyone has ever had. Or to become filthy rich.

 

That’s all fine.

 

The problem is when you try and achieve that immediately.

 

The perfect example of this is working out. So many people will go from not exercising at all, to taking on a training program that is hugely too ambitious for them. So for example, they might decide that they are going to try and work out four times a week at the gym. That sounds like a reasonable and modest goal, until you realise that they’re going to be training for an hour, probably travelling for 30 minutes, and likely showering for 20. Throw in getting changed, and preparing for the next day, and suddenly you’re introducing about 8 hours of work into your routine.

Eight hours is not a small amount. In fact, it is an entire working day!

 

Not only is this a huge amount of time, but it’s also a huge amount of energy you are expected to expend. And if you aren’t exercising right now, it’s probably because you don’t have the time or energy! What is going to change this time exactly?

 

Better is to set a target of training at home for 20 minutes twice a week. A far more modest aim, but a much healthier start.

 

A similar example is when someone wants to create an app. So often they will come up with an idea for an app they think will change the world – an app that they think can rival Facebook. This requires cloud computing, security measures, and all sorts of other things! Can they program? Well… no.

 

There is nothing wrong with this ambition. But it should not be the first thing they make. The first thing they make should be a clever calculator, or a throw away game. THAT is how you succeed.

 

Start small. Be consistent. Success takes time.

 

Concept of Microworkout to Bring Work-Life Balance

A microworkout is a tiny spell of exercise that lasts just 1-5 minutes. It is often spoken about in conjunction with the term “kaizen.” Kaizen is the Japanese word for “improvement,” which has been co-opted to mean “making tiny changes to a process in order to yield huge results.” The philosophy is that a small action, when repeated daily, can add up to something profound.

 

This is the concept of the microworkout. While many people attempt to start 4-hour training programs to no avail, working out for just 5 minutes a day is far more achievable. Will the results be as great? Not to begin with no, but the point is that you’ll use this as a way to form new positive habits that you can then use to introduce hardcore training.

 

Likewise, you can use microworkouts two; three, or five times a day and that way distribute your training throughout the day. The result is that you exercise a fair amount, but in a far more palatable manner. Moreover, your metabolism stays rose throughout the day, and you don’t undergo those long, unhealthy periods of uninterrupted inactivity.

 

But there’s a similar concept that is even more effective. That is to train as a part of your daily routine. In other words, you’re turning your regular activities into microworkouts. For example, that means you’ll be performing calf raises on a curb while waiting for the bus, doing curls while carrying bags, or even doing tricep dips on the couch while watching television.

 

This type of training completely solves the issue of time. You don’t have to “fit in” your exercise, because you’re doing it at the same time as something you already would have done.

 

Better yet, it takes the idea of continually exercising throughout the day even further. This is actually how the human body is evolved to train. We are not intended to go through long periods of complete inactivity.

 

But can it be as effective? That depends on your approach and your goals. For weight loss, calorie burn is calorie burn no matter how the activity is distributed. 

 

For building and toning muscle, cumulative damage over a short period of time is often needed. That said, there are quick ways to accomplish this (such as with eccentric isometrics) and by understanding these concepts you can work effective training into and around your regular routine.

 

Few Improvements You Can Make to Yourself Right Now

We all want to be better. We all want to be the best versions of ourselves. Problem is that getting to this point can be difficult when you have so little time and energy left in a typical day.

 

Attempting to start a huge new workout regime, or set up a home business will often just be met with resistance, failure, and disappointment. These are huge changes that you hope to enact, and very often we don’t have the energy or time to make them happen.

 

So instead, why not start very small and then let those little changes add up to a better you? Here are ten tiny improvements you can make to yourself right now.

 

1 Make Your Bed in the Morning

 

This is a great way to “train” your willpower, not to mention improve the bed you come home to that evening. You’ll even sleep better!

 

2 Wake Up Ten Minutes Earlier

 

What could you do with ten more minutes in your day? Just move your clock ten minutes earlier, you’ll hardly notice the difference.

 

3 Take Omega 3 Fatty Acid

 

This boosts brain function, energy, immunity, and more. It also helps to fight inflammation, and most of us don’t get enough of it.

 

4 Sit Outside

 

For at least five minutes a day. You’ll sleep better, boost vitamin D, get more fresh air, and even improve your temperature regulation and immune system. Try doing something you already do but move it outside – like exercise.

 

5 Meditate for Five Minutes

 

Meditation has HUGE and profound benefits. It’s also something that can be hard to stick with. So start with just five minutes a day, that’s actually enough to see improvements in mood, focus, and more.

 

6 Drink More Water

 

You’ll look slimmer, look better, and feel more energetic. Most of us are permanently dehydrated.

 

7 Get New Shoes

 

Or a watch. Or a suit. In short – make one small change to improve the way you look. You’ll feel better and people will treat you differently.

 

8 Breathe With Your Mouth Closed

 

If you don’t already, make this a commitment. You’ll find it actually improves your looks and it helps to better filter and improve the oxygen coming in.

 

9 Do 20 Press Ups Every Day

 

This will boost energy levels, tone your abs, increase your pushing strength, and serve as the basis for a larger training program.

 

10 Floss Your Mouth

 

A small thing that not only makes your teeth whiter but has been shown to reduce risk of cancer and more!

 

How to Use Kaizen to Get What You Want In Life

Kaizen is a Japanese word meaning “improvement.” However, it is also often used in a more specific concept, as an approach to project management and efficiency.

 

The term was born in manufacturing, where it described the way in which making a small change to a process in an assembly line could result in HUGE increases in efficiency and net profit thanks to automation and force multiplication. This concept quickly caught on in the worlds of business and self-development respectively. In both contexts, small changes can add up to big impact.

 

Often kaizen is taken to mean that you should engage in “microworkouts” and the like. That you should try to form new habits by doing something extremely small and easy. 

 

While this can be useful advice in the right context, it is not true kaizen. 

 

An example of a kaizen approach would be to look at everything you do in a typical workflow: that means every step you take from booting up the computer, to making coffee, to answering emails, to uploading articles.

 

You’d then see which of these steps was taking the longest, and see if there was any way to make them each more efficient – to thereby gain more time and freedom.

 

For instance, if you fix your computer’s booting up speed by five minutes, that could result in 25 minutes of extra time per week. What if you stopped taking so many coffee breaks? Or what if you slightly altered the order of your main tasks, such that you didn’t need to switch between programs so much? A few changes like this and you could save hours every week to become significantly more productive.

 

What does this have to do with getting what you want from life? 

 

Simple: you can take this exact approach to your current lifestyle in order to make time and energy for the things you want to do. That might mean investing in a dishwasher so that you can spend less time washing up in the evening – even getting a cleaner if you can afford one!

 

It might also mean doing some kind of chore on the commute home, such that you don’t need to do it when you get back in the evening. 

 

Either way, this kind of thinking makes your daily grind more efficient. Therefore, you suddenly can fit in a few hours to work out and you have the energy to do so to boot! And the same goes for whatever else it is that you would like to achieve.

 

Importance of 10 Minute Full Body Workout

Kaizen means making small changes that can add up to big improvements in your life. In fitness, that often means using small workouts that can be just as impactful, but require a whole lot less time and effort. The result? You’re far more likely to do it and to stick to it.

 

This workout will train your full body and it only takes ten minutes. And you just need a single dumbbell. So if you have a few spare, why not give it a go now? And it takes just three movements:

 

Exercise One: One Handed Dumbbell Squats

 

To start, you'll be performing 10 squats with a dumbbell hanging in front of you. Keep your arm hanging down the middle between your legs, squat directly downwards and then push up through your legs.

 

Exercise Two: Dumbbell Swing

 

Now, while still squatting, you're going to start swinging the dumbbell directly upwards. This is essentially the same as a kettlebell swing with the obvious difference being that you're using a dumbbell, not a kettlebell. The movement is excellent for your legs, for your core and for your shoulders and it's also brilliant cardio.

 

Exercise Three: Half Burpee

 

Now you're going to put your dumbbell down and perform half burpees. This means you start on all fours and then jump forward with your legs close to your hands and then out into press up position. In other words, this is a burpee without the jumping part at the end. This is another great one that involves cardio, that trains the abs and that works the pecs and upper body.

 

Completing the Workout

 

To complete this workout, you're going to perform ten repetitions on each exercise. Once you've done that, you're going to switch immediately to the other side and do another round. Then you're going to pause for fifteen seconds and go again!

 

The astute among you may have noticed that this doesn't target every muscle group. Sure, there's no bicep curl in there and nothing for your rear deltoids. However, these are highly compound movements that will have an anabolic effect. Meanwhile, the whole body is working in unison through each of the exercises. When you combine these factors, you have a workout that involves the whole body to at least some extent and which encourages growth for that reason. Sometimes you don't need to target a body part precisely in order to trigger growth – you just need to shock the whole system into action.

 

So don't rely on this workout and if you only have one dumbbell… buy another! Use this as something a bit different though and as a lesson in creating training with low resources. No excuses!

 

Importance of Small Savings

One of the big problems people face when it comes to trying to achieve their goals, is that they want to see certain results immediately. There is something much more appealing about the notion of being richer in a week, or being in better shape by the end of the month.

 

Unfortunately, this just isn’t how it works. At least not in most cases.

 

Rather, in order to see the results you want, you need to put in consistent boring effort on a daily and weekly and monthly basis. 

 

Saving money is the perfect example of this. You won’t save money with some kind of scheme or some kind of trick. You aren’t going to fix your bank accounts overnight.

 

But what you can do is to make lots of small smart decisions that will add up to large savings over time. This is Kaizen.

 

Let’s take a look at some examples of how to do this.

 

Write a Budget

 

It starts by writing a budget. The problem is when people are very vague about this – not knowing quite what they actually spend on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. They then make random assertions to spend X amount less in this category or that, or they randomly cut out one type of activity that normally costs money.

 

This tends to not to work. Instead, you should try to create a strict budget that will show you precisely what you spend in each category in your life. That means things like travel, entertainment, groceries, eating out etc. Once you’ve done this, you can assess how much you are spending in each area.

 

This is a very useful exercise because it immediately illuminates the areas where you are spending more money than you need to – the areas where waste is happening and where you aren’t being efficient.

 

NOW you apply a kaizen approach by making a commitment – a SMALL commitment – in just one of those areas. For example, you might say that you’re going to spend $10 less on entertainment next month. That might seem like a small deal, but it can make a big impact over time.

 

Or how about saying that you’ll spend $5 less on transport – this might mean just choosing to walk a little more. Once you manage this, you can then try and cut back by another $5 in another area next month.

 

Keep doing this and month after month you will streamline your savings – and that’s how you can eventually become very wealthy!

 

Kaizen Concept for Relationships

Kaizen is the Japanese concept of incremental improvement. It means making small daily changes that add up over time to represent huge differences in your life. The concept comes from manufacturing, where making a small improvement can result in gigantic changes that can hugely impact on profits in a good way.

 

This same strategy is often applied to weight loss, exercise, productivity, and finance.

 

But what about relationships? How can we apply this concept to one of the things that matters most in life?

 

Patterns

 

One piece of advice that any new couple should heed is this: be wary of the patterns and habits you fall into.

 

What many people don’t realize is that relationships – like people – are very much habitual. The habits you set down early on in terms of the balance of power, or the roles each of you take on at particular times.

 

You shouldn’t therefore do something once early on in your relationship, unless it’s something you’re happy to continually do.

 

For example, if you pick your partner up from work on the way home once, this is very likely to become a habit. If your partner goes into another room one evening to work rather than watch TV with you, this is very likely to become a habit.

 

This is all fine as long as they’re things you’re happy with. The problem is breaking patterns and habits that you aren’t happy with.

 

The answer? Kaizen. Small steps that add up to a big difference.

 

These habits can be broken just as they can be learned, but you need to start with a small step. For example, you might one night explain that you need to come home a little later, or that you’re very tired, and that you won’t be able to pick your partner up that night.

 

Wait a week and do the same thing again. Then do two nights in a row. Before long, a new habit can be set.

 

Diagnostics

 

Another way to apply kaizen to relationships is in a diagnostic sense of continual improvement. In other words, you can look at your current relationship and identify key areas where things could be improved. Then find small ways to do that.

 

This doesn’t need to mean pointing the finger at someone! It could rather mean deciding you both want to spend more time together, and therefore finding small opportunities to do that. Likewise, it could mean deciding to do more interesting things, and so maybe making a small change – like banning television just one night of the week.