Why You Can't Meditate & How To Change That
I'm willing to bet that meditation is not a new concept to you.
With one of the latest rough estimates gauging that anywhere between 200 to 500 million people meditate with regularity globally, there is a pretty good chance you've either tried it at some point or at least have been encouraged to -especially if you decided to read this article.
And while there are plenty of people who swear by its power, myself included at times, I'm convinced that there are plenty more of us who just don't get what all the hype is about. While I don't personally believe that we all need to become meditation aficionados, I wanted to create a resource for those of you who have interest in jumping on the bandwagon but always seem to hit a roadblock. I've nailed down 4 of the most common reasons why so many of us struggle to meditate and how we can change that. Watch it or read it, the choice is yours!
1. Preconceived Belief That Meditation Is Boring
Compared to the sights and sounds of ordinary conscious life, meditation certainly can be substantially less sensorially stimulating -especially at first. But that's part of the point! One of meditation's greatest potential powers is its ability to bring us into the present moment without any glaring distractions, a reality that many of us haven't experienced in years.
So if you're part of the crowd that keeps putting meditation off because you think it'll be too boring, I challenge you to ask yourself: is boredom really the issue? Or am I instead either so addicted to stimulation or even worse afraid to be alone with my thoughts?
Solution: Involve others! Either setup a challenge with your friends to add an element of competition and accountability to it, or meditate with a group in a public space. It's amazing how much less intimidating being alone with your thoughts can be if you're not the only one intending to do it.
2. Crazy Expectations
If I were to ask you to create a mental image representative of the word meditation, what would come to mind? I'm willing to bet that at least one (if not several) of the following elements would come up: the sunrise, a sunset, a monk, mountains, or someone sitting cross legged with great posture.
While these visuals certainly are accurate depictions of meditation, they don't account for the vast majority of the 200 to 500 million of us that are practicing it regularly. Meditation can be done at any time of day, in a countless number of settings, on a comfy chair, and sitting or laying quite normally. So rather than setting these unrealistic expectations of what meditation is supposed to be like, why not just try making it your own?
Solution: Remind yourself that we are all human. Even those who claim to have attained the most profound insight while meditating have had just as many random thoughts pop into their head, so you're not broken and just as capable.
3. Shear Impatience
We live in a world where a substantial number of us are not only used to, but fully expect things instantaneously. We're run by instant gratification, and when something fails to provide that, we're quick to lose interest and ultimately our patience with it.
If you want to meditate regularly but patience is an issue for you, I've got some bad news: meditation will never satisfy your need for instant results. BUT meditation is also one of the best tools at developing a state of mind that won't be so hungry for them!
Solution: Start by "forcing" the patience on you through a reward and/or punishment system. Establish something that you are going to reward yourself with for meditating 7, 14, or 21 days in a row. Or even better, setup a punishment (ex. donating $100 to a cause you don't believe in) for not sticking to your goal.
4. Overreacting To Thoughts
One second your focusing on your breath, and before you know it several minutes have gone by and your mind has drifted through a random string of thoughts you never thought imaginable. As I mentioned above, this is far more normal than you may think!
The part we need to focus on is how we choose to react to noticing that our mind has drifted off rather than the fact that it has.
There is a substantial difference between allowing yourself to get pissed off while believing that the entire meditation is ruined, and just noting that you've drifted, and bringing yourself back to your initial intention.
Solution: I've highlighted the word noting above because I believe it's one of the best solutions for this issue. When you realize that your mind has drifted, choose to make a calm mental note that it has happened and then bring yourself back either by re-focusing your attention on your breath, or by doing a numeric countdown (anything with a meditative purpose that your mind can easily focus on).
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