10 Insanely Effective Ways To Meditate As A Beginner
95% of your actions come from your subconscious mind. Whoa, that’s a lot! If you are a meditation beginner you may be wondering, “why should I meditate?” Meditation helps you to get into your subconscious brain and begin to change what is happening below the surface.
Meditation can be hard, boring, and seem like a waste of time when you have other more important things to do. However, meditation especially for beginners is one of the most productive and beneficial things you can do for yourself. I know that you know this and that’s why you are here.
I’m not going to convince you that you should meditate but give you effective tips that make it easier for you to meditate. I too, have not always liked meditation and struggled with it for years before I finally made it a habit.
There’s no wrong way to meditate, so if you are a beginner know that you can’t do it wrong. However, there are ways for you to get the most out of your meditative practice and to make it easier for you to stick with every day.
(This post contains affiliate links, and I will earn a commission if you purchase through these links. Please note that I’ve linked to these products purely because I recommend them, and they are from companies I trust. There is no additional cost to you.)
Common Hesitations Meditation Beginners Have
When trying anything new, your ego will pop in to say, are you sure you want to try something new? It may change your life and change is scary.
This is perfectly normal and it’s your ego’s way of trying to keep you “safe.” It thinks that change = not safe. But it’s wrong. In actuality, change = expansion.
So, if you do have some of these thoughts, just know that is where they are coming from, and if you can push past them, they will eventually fade away.
• I Don’t Want to Meditate
It’s normal to not want to meditate for many reasons. Perhaps you find it boring, or it takes too long.
You won’t feel like this forever. Once you build the habit of meditating and notice how good you feel, you likely will change your mind.
Often, there are different phases in your life where you want to meditate more and others when you don’t. If this is the case, honor this as well.
Personally, I find it very hard to meditate in the summer but once winter comes, it is much easier. Summer is a time of action, while winter is a time of going inwards. So, if you find this as well, know that it’s normal.
• Meditation Is a Waste of Time
Meditation can feel like a waste of time because you aren’t really ‘doing’ anything. In a world where most of us grew up learning that we had to ‘do’ to be successful and worthy, laying down to meditate can feel useless.
However, if you believe in the law of attraction and healing your core limiting beliefs, then meditation is one of the most important things you can do. Even though it feels like you aren’t doing anything, you are.
A few things that meditation does for you:
- Releases limiting beliefs
- Heals physical and emotional pain
- Opens up and strengthens your intuition
- Reduces anxiety
- Connects you to divine information
- Clears your mind
- Speeds up your manifestations
- Improves sleep
• Meditation Is Boring
Meditation can be boring, but there are also times where you become so present that you don’t even realize how much time has gone by.
When you first start to meditate the first few minutes you aren’t in a flow state and your mind is taking over. Your mind wants to do things, not sit there. But if you can push past this part, you will eventually get into a flow state where time disappears, and you feel nothing but good energy flowing through you.
The more you meditate, the easier it is to reach this state. If you are listening to music with binaural beats, it will also help you get to this place much quicker as well. Therefore, you aren’t as bored for as long.
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• I Am Not a Person Who Meditates (It’s Not in My Identity)
Your ego may freak out when you are messing with its identity. After all, this is how it knows you. If you change it, then the ego doesn’t feel as safe. It is comfortable with doing the same things every single day and keeping your identity as it knows it to be.
When you are a meditation beginner, it can feel weird to think about doing something that isn’t yet a part of your identity. We often build habits and then use them to create an identity for ourselves.
For example, if you like to read then you’d consider yourself a reader or bookworm. This will feel natural to you because it is who you are.
When you are beginning to meditate your ego might be a bit scared because it doesn’t yet label itself as a meditator. Don’t worry, if you do it a few times and create it as a part of your daily habits, your ego will catch up and bring that label to your identity. When this happens, it won’t feel so weird anymore.
• I Am Not Good at Meditating
Maybe you gave meditating a go once and felt like you were doing it all wrong. It may have even brought up some negative emotions within you.
That is because your “stuff” is rising to the surface to be released. This is part of the process. So, you may have been frustrated and blamed it on the meditation. Whereas you were really feeling your stuff coming up and it felt uncomfortable.
Or you felt like you didn’t get anything out of it and therefore thought you were the problem and not good at it.
Many different feelings could have come up for you. Whatever they were, understand that it is actually a good thing. It’s ‘forcing’ you to expand into something that you weren’t before. Expansion is uncomfortable.
Next time you have the thought that you aren’t good at meditating, know that it’s not about being good or bad at it. Everyone has different experiences when they meditate and what’s right for you may not be for someone else. So, you can’t do it wrong. You can only judge it as wrong yourself.
10 Effective Tips for Meditation Beginners
1. Start Small
As a meditation beginner, starting anywhere is better than not starting at all. When I say start small, I mean super small.
Even 1 minute is better than nothing. You will begin to form a habit with consistency over time. Aim to start with one minute and then every day add on a minute.
You’ll find as you get into your meditation practice it will get more enjoyable all the time. So, while in the beginning, it might be hard to do even one minute, eventually you’ll WANT to go longer and longer as it feels so good.
2. Pick a Time That You Won’t Be Interrupted
When you are just getting started meditating, you’ll want to be sure that you won’t get interrupted because that can ruin your whole meditation.
So, pick a time to do it every day when you know that you won’t get interrupted by kids, family, pets, or your phone.
Turn off your phone while you meditate or put it on silent mode in a different room. If you are using it for the music, then be sure to temporarily turn all notifications off.
It’s really important that you can focus especially in the beginning when meditation may feel a bit more difficult.
3. Pick a Time When You Know Your Mind Is Most Clear
You are generally the most relaxed in the morning and nighttime. As you get into your day, you start the think about all the things you have to do.
Notice when you are the clearest and choose that time to meditate. If you can meditate when you don’t have a million thoughts running through your head, that will be the most beneficial to you.
Morning is a great time to meditate because you are still a bit sleepy, and your brainwaves are in a more relaxed state. You are more open to suggestions when you are in this state. So, if you are doing guided meditations your mind will accept the information more easily.
In the evening as you begin to get tired and your melatonin kicks in you are also more open to suggestions. Your rational mind doesn’t fight information as much because it is too tired. So, this is another ideal time to meditate.
4. Choose a Space That You Will Meditate In
It’s important for meditation beginners to pick a comfortable space that is relaxing to them and that you won’t be interrupted. Use this spot for all of your meditations. If you build a habit of always meditating in this space, then your brain will begin to associate it with that action.
As a meditation beginner, over time it will help you to automatically take that action in the future because you now associate that room with meditation.
If you have crystals, incense, or anything else that makes it feel relaxing, be sure to put those in your space so that you can get as relaxed as possible.
5. Get Comfortable
If you are uncomfortable, it is hard to meditate. You don’t have to sit up cross-legged if you find that extremely uncomfortable.
Pick something that is comfortable but not too comfortable that you fall asleep every time you go to meditate.
6. Use Headphones
If you are listening to binaural beats, headphones help to enhance your experience. This is because two different frequencies of sound are being played and streaming through to each ear separately.
Headphones also help to cut out any background noise that you may hear which helps you to go further into your meditation.
As a beginner meditator, if other people in your house are making noise, then the headphones will help to drown out that noise better than listening without.
7. Allow Yourself to Move Around As a Meditation Beginner
Many articles say that you should try to be as still as possible during your meditation and not move at all. That’s a lot of pressure to put on yourself as a mediation beginner!
You will be constantly trying to stop the natural energy that wants to flow out of you and suppress what is happening.
When you meditate, you are releasing stuck energy out of your body. It is literally moving around and shifting. If you try to stop it then you won’t get as much out of your meditation practice as you want. You will literally be stopping the natural process of energy moving through you.
Allow your body to do what it needs to. Your body is connected to your mind, and it likely has stuck energy in it. This is especially important for a meditation beginner who likely hasn’t shifted any of this energy out of your body. Allow your body to do what it needs to do during meditation. It is a good thing if you can get energy flowing and moving around in you.
8. Drop All Expectations of How It Will Go
As a meditation beginner, it’s best to drop all expectations of how it will go. Your experience will likely be different from other people’s experiences. Each time you meditate it will be different.
One time you may feel bliss and calm and another time you may bawl your eyes out (which is great for releasing.)
If you can go into your meditation with an intention of what you want to accomplish but not an expectation of how it will go, that is best.
For example, you might have an intention to simply quiet your mind one time. Another time you might have an intention to begin to break through some of your limiting beliefs. The experiences you have with each intention will be unique to you.
9. Allow Any Emotions That Come Up to Be There
If during your meditation you experience different emotions, embrace them and allow them to be there. If you need to cry, then cry. If you want to scream, then scream. These emotions are coming up to be released and removed from your body. Therefore, it is a good thing if you allow them to do that.
I was taking a mediumship and channeling course in a group with 6 other people. The instructor was leading us through a meditation and for some reason, one person started laughing out loud which led me to laugh out loud and then led another person to laugh out loud. It was the first time I’ve ever laughed so hard during a meditation. The instructor also said she’s never experienced anything like that before and she’s glad we didn’t hold it in.
We could have held it in and kept that energy stuck in our bodies. But it wanted to come out. Even though we felt silly, we allowed whatever was happening to happen.
10. Make It a Habit
When you are a meditation beginner, if you skip a day or two, it can be easy to keep skipping and saying that you will do it later. The longer you go between sessions the harder it is to get back into it. The hardest part of anything is starting it. Once you gain momentum, it carries you forward.
If you can make meditation a habit and a part of your daily life, it will be much easier to stick with it. Pick a time every day that you will do it and try not to ever miss. Even if you don’t have much time and do it for only 2 minutes it will keep the momentum.
If you miss a day, your brain will tell you all sorts of things that aren’t true and that don’t feel good. Such as, “you can’t stick to anything. Meditation isn’t for you. You never finish anything.”
We don’t want your ego getting in the way of your progress. So, stick with it every day even if it’s only a few minutes some days. Pick a time that works best for you that you know you will stick to it and commit to doing it at that time every day.
Final Thoughts: Meditation Beginners Tips
Getting into a regular meditation practice isn’t always easy for a beginner. However, once you get some momentum going and start to feel really good from your meditations, it will be much easier to stick with.
Start small and commit to creating a daily meditation habit. Be sure to notice and record what is happening internally as you go through it. Also, record what shows up externally. I guarantee that your external will begin to change as your internal state changes.
~Meghan
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iAwake Meditations has helped thousands of people, including myself!
They have so many unique kinds of tracks for people who are passionate about waking up, healing, and making a difference.
I really think you’ll benefit from it and I highly recommend it.
