How to Start Meditation in 3 Easy Steps

More and more people are now beginning to appreciate the amazing power of meditation. No longer does the average Joe or Josephine view meditation as being some kind of black magic – it’s now understood as a highly scientific and practical tool that anyone can and should use for better brain health.

 

But how do you start? It’s still a daunting and somewhat abstract concept. So, to help you overcome that notion, here’s how to start meditation in 3 easy steps.

 

Find a Quiet Place

 

Meditation can be done anywhere, but it’s certainly easier when you are free from distractions. And that’s especially true for beginners. So, find a quiet spot, and if you want to make this a regular practice, try to make it somewhere that you will be able to come too often.

 

Now sit down however is comfortable. Don’t lie down though – only because you risk falling asleep if you do!

 

Set Some Time

 

The next step is to set yourself some time out. You can do this by setting a timer – which means you won’t need to keep checking your watch, or worry about overshooting and missing some appointment.

 

If you’re starting out for the first time, then ten minutes is more than enough. But in all honesty, you can even get benefit from just five minutes. This is what many people don’t realize when they make excuses for not starting. We all should be able to find five minutes of quiet in our day. If you cannot, then the issue is deeper routed than perhaps you realized!

 

Focus

 

Finally, the next step is to focus. That means focussing on something like breathing or perhaps repeating a word or phrase. You can also try focussing on something in the environment around you. A popular practice for instance is to focus on a single flame.

 

Then there’s the option to focus on emptying your thoughts, or perhaps to focus on reflecting on those thoughts in a dispassionate manner. 

 

Whatever the case, all you are trying to do is to take conscious control over your attention and to direct it towards something that is non-stressful, and that will help you to recover a little energy and mood. That’s all there is to meditation and it’s really rather simple.

 

If you’re still struggling, then at this point you may wish to consider using a guided meditation – like something from Headspace. These guided meditations talk you through a script that will help to direct your attention for you. 

 

Meditation and Creativity – How One Helps the Other

Meditation is heralded by many as being a ‘cure all’ – a panacea that can prevent all of your woes and help you to find peace and enlightenment.

 

They’re not wrong per say. Compared with many other strategies, meditation is certainly one of the most effective when it comes to overcoming anxiety and getting a better perspective on things. But unfortunately, nothing is perfect. That includes meditation.

 

Meditation is all about getting ‘out of your own head’ and focussing. It’s about being in the moment and not reflecting on problems. 

 

But here’s the thing: reflecting on problems is useful. Even a little bit of stress is useful – it’s called eustress.

 

And the biggest potential casualty when it comes to meditation is creativity and the default mode network. The default mode network is the selection of brain areas that light up when you daydream, or think about your own future. People associate this part of the brain with a) being distracted from what’s happening, and b) being negative.

 

But the truth? The default mode network is also where many of us come up with our very best ideas – including Albert Einstein. Daydreaming about the future is how we learn more about who we are, and what we want to accomplish.

 

So, the risk is that we throw the baby out with the bathwater.

 

The good news is that meditation isn’t to blame. The problem is with the way it is sometimes pedalled – by people who claim we should always be in the moment.

The truth is that the brain has many different states and we perform best when we’re able to choose those states and jump between them as needed.

 

So we need to be ‘in the moment’ when delivering a speech or spending time with friends, but there’s no harm in letting our mind wander when we’re going for a stroll and thinking about writing a great story.

 

This is where something called ‘productive meditation’ comes in. Suggested by author Cal Newport in his book ‘Deep Work’, this form of meditation means you are focussing on a problem or a creative endeavour. Instead of thinking about nothing, you are thinking about something you want to work on. 

 

And in fact, this kind of meditation agrees with what some new research suggests: that we are most creative when we active both the ‘daydreamy’ default mode network and the focussed ‘executive control network’. When you focus on being unfocussed, amazing things happen.

 

The Power of Awe for Life Changing Mental Transformations

Meditation is a tool that anyone can use to tap into a sense of calm as and when they need it. You can think of meditation almost as a ‘place’ that you can go to in order to get away from it all. The only difference is that this ‘place’ is always there, and you don’t have to leave your house!

 

But meditation is just one example of a tool we can use to ‘reset’ our mental state as it were. Another that is just effective – though slightly less convenient – is to seek out moments of ‘awe’.

 

What do we mean by awe?

 

Essentially, any moment where you feel overwhelmed by the scale and beauty of what you’re seeing. Perhaps the most classic example is when you emerge at the top of a mountain hike to discover a beautiful vista unfolding beneath you. That moment where your breath is taken away – is a moment of awe.

 

So, what exactly is going on here? What’s the brain chemistry? Why is it good for us? And what is the evolutionary function of such a mood? 

 

As far as the best guesses go, we now believe that this sense of awe is triggered by the release of hormones in response to massive restructuring of the brain’s neural networks. In short, you suddenly feel ‘small’, and what you’re seeing is forcing you to rethink your position.

 

That’s why we can equally feel the same way when looking at something of supreme beauty, or when gazing at the stars. At this moment, the bar has been reset and we are forced to look at things differently. The need for such restructuring will come with a cascade of neurotransmitters and hormones that will support this change. And that’s what makes us feel good in that moment.

 

But in the long term, this is extremely good for us, because it helps us to restructure neural connections that might otherwise have been negative – and to get out of our own heads for a moment. 

 

To put it another way, it’s a great way to get your life in perspective and to remember the grand scale of the world and universe around you. It’s harder to think that the interview you have tomorrow is the worst thing in the world when you’re forced to remember that you are not even a speck on the cosmic canvas.

 

So, head out for a walk. And if you can’t do that, then just spend some time thinking deeply about a topic that amazes you.

 

The Power of Nature Walks

Here’s something that many of us simply don’t do enough of: walking in nature.

Going for a nature walk is one of THE most effective ways to feel calmer, to help improve your overall health, and even to stimulate creativity.

 

Walking of any kind is in fact extremely good for stimulating creativity and encouraging calmness. The reason for this, is that when we go for a long walk, we are engaging in a form of low-level activity. We need to think a little about where we’re going and how to coordinate our feet, but nothing too strenuous. This in turn prevents us from getting bored and frustrated, while freeing our minds up to explore other diverse topics.

 

And more specifically, it triggers what is known as the ‘default mode network’. That in turn, means that you’re going to find yourself daydreaming and thinking more creatively about the future.

 

This is why many people had their best ideas while going for long walks – countless famous authors, scientists, and others have expressed the same.

 

What’s even more potent though, is to take a walk-in nature. Why? Because the natural surrounds of a forest walk or seaside stroll can help to make us more relaxed, which in turn stimulates further creativity. 

 

The reason is evolutionary: in the wild, the sight of lush green trees meant that we were approaching shelter, supplies, and resources – nourishment. Today, even looking at the color green on its own has been shown to lower the heart rate and to help improve calmness.

 

There’s more to this as well. For example, walking outdoors is also a brilliant way to boost your health. Walking outside not only means getting some exercise and burning some calories/fat, but also increasing your production of vitamin D. Vitamin D acts like a ‘master hormone’ and can help to boost other hormones that improve mood and encourage a more ideal physique.

 

The fresh air likewise will help in all kinds of ways: it will increase your energy at the time, and going forward. It will also help you to sleep better the following night, significantly improving your stress levels the next day.

 

So, make time for walking – not just as a way to get from point a to point b. Walk for the sake of walking, and take some time to breathe deeply, drink in the sights, and listen to the birds. It’s good for the soul and even better for your brain.

 

Top Types of Meditation

Did you know there is more than one type of meditation? In fact, there are countless forms of meditation – each of which has different goals and methods. 

 

The question then, is which type of meditation is right for you – and how do you get started with the one you choose? This guide will help you to understand more and decide.

 

Mindfulness Meditation

 

We’ll start with this one, only because it has become so popular recently that it’s the type many people may be familiar with. 

 

Mindfulness meditation comes from cognitive behavioural therapy – a psychotherapeutic approach in psychology. The idea here is not to empty your mind of thoughts – as it is in many other forms – but rather to try and detach yourself from those thoughts and not be affected by them. Note which thoughts float by, but don’t try to change them.

 

Body Scan Meditation

 

Closely linked to mindfulness meditation is body scan meditation – this is a form of meditation that involves focussing on each part of your body and progressively relaxing. It’s great for refreshing the brain and chilling after a hard day.

 

Transcendental Meditation

 

This is another of the more popular and well-known forms of meditation. The goal here is to clear your mind and to do so usually by focussing on a mantra or perhaps an imaginary point in space. Doing this can help you to eventually close down areas of your brain while retaining consciousness.

 

Loving Kindness Meditation

 

Loving kindness meditation is a form of meditation that involves focussing your mind on a specific feeling – in this case love and kindness! By doing this, you will feel happier and you will become better at forgiving people. It also feels fantastic in the moment. 

 

Kundalini Yoga Meditation

 

Kundalini yoga meditation is a form of moving meditation. The idea here is to move gently into different positions while focussing on controlling your breathing and staying calm and focussed. The result can be highly relaxing while also improving your overall health and wellness.

 

Religious Meditation

 

Religious practitioners can engage in meditation by focussing deeply on a passage of text from their scripture, or on a prayer. 

 

Zazen

 

Zazen is a form of meditation associated with Zen Buddhism. It must be taught under the leadership of an instructor and involves a number of specific steps. However, the objective is once again to focus primarily on detaching yourself from your thoughts and letting go of judgement. 

 

Amazing ‘Mental States’ and How They Can Enhance Performance

You might think of your brain as being fairly consistent. You generally have a consistent level of intelligence; your mood is usually pretty steady and on the whole you don’t tend to change all that much. Or so it seems.

 

In reality though, your brain is constantly changing. Not only is it growing and adapting, but it will also change in terms of what it’s capable of and how you feel. The chemical balance is likely to change a huge amount.

 

In other words, our brain goes through a number of states and depending on which brain state you are experiencing at any given time, you can expect very different results. 

 

Let’s take a look at just a few mental states and how they have incredible impacts on the way you feel and perform.

 

Flow State

 

A flow state is a much-coveted state that is often described as being the state of ultimate ‘peek’ human performance. 

 

It’s a little more complex than that. But essentially, this is a state in which you are completely focussed on a given task, normally because you perceive it as highly important. This actually suppresses activity in the frontal region of the brain, allowing you to act on near pure-instinct and thereby giving you intense mental clarity and reactions. 

 

Fight or Flight

 

Fight or flight is a stress state. In this state, the body is releasing adrenaline, dopamine and other chemicals that ramp up the nervous system and increase strength while also suppressing immune function and digestion. Stress like this isn’t a bad thing in the short term. Acute stress allows us to react to situations quickly when we need to.

 

The problem comes when this state carries on and becomes chronic.

 

Rest and Digest

 

The opposite of fight or flight, this is when the body is able to relax and calm down. This is when we digest our food, when we sleep and when we build tissue. We’re also more creative in this state!

 

Hysterical Strength

 

Hysterical strength is a little like ‘beserker mode’. Under extreme duress, we produce so much adrenaline that we’re able to call on incredible reserves of strength. This demonstrates just how much of an impact our mind can have on our body – just what is possible when you’re in the right mindset. 

 

And there are many more. If you want to perform your best, best get into the right mindset!

 

Can Nootropics Make You Smarter?

When it comes to changing your mindset in order to change your life, you probably think of things like ‘the gratitude attitude’ or maybe meditation. You’re probably aware of mindfulness and of CBT.

 

But what if you could simply flick a switch and completely change the way that your brain works? What if you could become smarter and cleverer overnight? Wouldn’t that be the ideal?

 

This is what we see in the film Limitless. The main character Eddie Mora takes a single tablet and suddenly gains access to latent power of his brain. He becomes smarter, wittier, more charming, more creative – and in no time at all he has written a bestselling novel, made a huge amount of money on the stock market and run for political office.

 

This is what science would call a ‘nootropic’ and the shocking part is that they’re real…

 

What Are Nootropics and Do They Work?

 

Of course, the reality is nothing like the movies. There is no pill that can make you smarter. But what some nootropics claim to be able to do, is to make you a little more alert, to boost your memory and perhaps to help your motivation.

 

These work in a variety of ways and they take many forms. For instance, one of the most popular types is something called modafinil. Modafinil is a drug used to treat narcolepsy but it has also been used by fighter pilots and top CEOs in order to help them need less sleep and work longer and harder. This works by affecting a neurochemical called orexin, which regulates our sleep wake cycle.

 

Others might work by stimulating our fight or flight response through dopamine or adrenaline. Others meanwhile appear to enhance brain plasticity to increase learning. Some simply give the brain a bit of an energy boost to help you feel less tired.

 

So, do they work? The answer is simple: it depends! Some nootropics work well and really can give you a boost in focus. Others don’t really have much effect, while others still might actually be bad for you and cause headaches or even addiction!

 

The key is to finding the best ones by reading around and doing the research. But suffice to say that normally the best ones are the natural ones and the ones with the milder impact on the way you feel. Stick to these and you’ll reduce negative side effects – but just know that nothing can turn you into a genius overnight. 

 

How a Stoic Mindset Can Make You Impervious to Harm

One of the most incredibly motivating and inspiring films of all time is without a doubt Rocky. Rocky is a film about people punching and hitting each other, but it has become much more than that. The Rocky theme tune is iconic and plays during pretty much any scene featuring people getting better at something. The film is adored by gym-goers all around the world and it is the ‘go to film’ for getting pumped.

 

But Rocky’s appeal lies deeper than the surface level masculinity, muscles and 80s rock. The key to Rocky’s influence lies in its message.

 

Because when Rocky goes up against and impossibly tall opponent, you know that it’s a metaphor. This is a metaphor for life and in our own lives, that opponent could be any obstacle. You know that eventually, Rocky is going to plough through that obstacle and you feel that in time, you could do the same.

 

Stoicism

 

If you watch the Rocky films more deeply, you’ll notice that they all share a few things in common. In particular, they all have Rocky in a rather bad place at the start. Rocky starts out destitute and alone and it is only by conquering these challenges that he is able to improve his lifestyle and his happiness.

 

What is this telling us? Simple: life is hard. And this is clearest in the excellent speech in Rocky Balboa ‘It ain’t about how hard you can hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit’.

Here, Rocky is espousing stoic wisdom. Stoicism is perhaps the most bad-ass philosophy and its central tenant is that life is hard. Bad things will happen. There’s no benefit in being blindly optimistic: all we can do is to focus on dealing with the hard times when they come.

 

By doing this, we prepare ourselves for the storms that will come and we fortify ourselves against them. We are prepared for hard times and we are psychologically ready to deal with them. And because of this: nothing can surprise us and nothing can slow us down.

 

There is honor in surviving hard times. It makes us stronger, it makes us better. So, don’t shut out the hard times: thrive in them and allow them to make you stronger. That is stoicism and that is how you can ensure that you never face a challenge that you can’t handle.

 

How to Get Amazing Results from a Diet, Using the Right Mindset

Everyone wants to lose weight but it seems that only a very small fraction of people has the ability to do that in a satisfying and effective way. 

 

So many people start diets that they never see through that it would lead you to believe that no diet is really effective.

 

But of course, this isn’t true. Of course, there are ways you can diet and be effective but the key lies more with the mindset and the approach rather than the specifics of the diet.

In this post, we’ll look at what that means.

 

The Reason Diets Fail

 

The reason diets fail is because people approach them in the wrong way. They approach diets as short-term solutions and quick fixes. The fact that people often describe themselves as being ‘on’ a diet, is really just a clue that at some point in the future, they expect to be off said diet.

 

Even when they start diets without this mindset, they often still end up quitting the diet before they get anywhere with it, simply because it isn’t properly designed to fit into their lifestyle.

 

Let’s take something like intermittent fasting, or ketogenic diets. Both of these are great diets. Both of them can be effective and actually burn through fat quickly while providing other health benefits.

 

But at the same time, these diets will also leave you with zero ‘wiggle room’. What many of the people who recommend these diets don’t realize, is just how much of a role your social life has in your diet.

 

Because eating isn’t just something we do in order to fuel and sustain ourselves – it’s something we do in social settings. Most romantic dates involve food, most meetings with friends involve food. And most evenings, you will probably share meals with your family.

 

If you sit there sipping black tea, then it’s not exactly very social!

 

Solution

 

So, the solution is not to choose the diet that will help you lose weight the fastest, but the diet that you can actually stick to. My advice? Diet at breakfast and lunch. Cut your calories at this point to such a degree that you can afford to eat more at dinner.

 

Why? Because breakfast and lunch are the most functional meals of the day. We eat them in a hurry, we eat them on our breaks. But dinner is social and dinner is when we really want to enjoy our food.

 

That’s what works for me anyway, but it’s all about finding what works for you.