Mindfulness Meditation: Am I Doing It Right?

Not so long ago, people would have looked at you funny if they saw you running down the road for no good reason. People only ran to get away from something, not to just run, not for health. Now it’s a given, a recommended activity that so many of us partake in. It’s starting to look like meditation is following in it’s footsteps, as something that was often seen as a strange thing that only the very ‘spiritual’ would perform, meditation is now making its way into the lives of a very diverse range of people — from soldiers and backpackers to millionaires and business moguls.

One of the most common forms, and also the most misunderstood, if that of mindfulness meditation. Just take a look through Google at what the many experts say, and you’ll find a wealth of different ideas and opinions of how you should be performing mindful meditation. Some will say it’s an open awareness to everything, including thoughts, others will say it involves focusing on a single present moment experience such as your breath, some will say you need to be nonjudgmental and keep emotions out of it, others will say even more.

An article over at Huffington Post is here to say that even if you think you’re doing it wrong, you might be doing it right.

I teach people how to meditate and the most common statement I hear them utter is: I must not be very good at this. I just can’t seem to do it right. My mind keeps wandering! Actually, hearing them say this always makes me smile. Because, guess what? This is actually a sign that they are doing it exactly right! Doesn’t make sense, you say? Let’s look at a few facts:

• Scientists say people have 50,000+ thoughts each day. This is a sign that our minds wander, and wander often in order to reach that incredible number.
• Anything we do on a regular basis becomes a habit and, if not a habit, it certainly becomes something we no longer give any thought to doing; we just do it…without thinking. Brushing teeth. Tying shoes. Showering.
• Wandering minds become a habit for our brains.

Whatever form of meditation you chose, the most important decision is that you do chose one — meditation is slowly being studied and the many benefits uncovered, it’s no longer an airy fairy thing for a select few, it’s for everyone and can help anyone in a number of ways. Read the rest of the post for a little more info, and to learn why a wandering mind is actually part of the meditation experience.