Atomic Habits by James Clear changed my perspective on the value of small daily steps. If you haven’t read it, it’s a clear (no pun intended) and action-packed read that may just change your life.
You see, I’ve always wanted to be a meditator, but talk to me three kids later and time is a precious commodity. I don’t really have the luxury of spending 45 minutes in silence on a meditation cushion every day unless I want to do that at 4:30 am (and even then it’s not guaranteed it won’t be interrupted).
The best way I have found to be consistent with a daily mindfulness practice is to start small. I spend LITERALLY ONE minute meditating in the morning. Here’s how I do it:
I set a timer on my smart watch for one minute, while I am still lying in bed and have just woken up.
I spend that minute focusing on one thing. What I focus on might change daily, just to keep it interesting and mix it up. Sometimes I focus on my breath, other times I focus on whatever sounds I can hear in the room. Sometimes I just focus on observing the sensation of my back laying flat against the bed. It doesn’t really matter WHAT you focus on, the secret is just paying kind and careful attention to your experience.
When my mind wanders (oh yes, it wanders, even in the course of a minute!) I gently redirect my attention back to my focus whenever I “catch” myself.
A lot of times, after my minute is done, if the kids are still asleep, I might then set my watch for another 2 minutes (or however long I have) and do it again. But not always. The beauty of the 1-minute practice is that it guarantees that I can succeed. I MEDITATE DAILY!
This sense of success and feeling of having accomplished a goal that is important to me is not to be underestimated. You may have heard that “success breeds success.” It’s true. Try it and you’ll see. You may start incorporating little one-minute meditation breaks into your day, or doing it at nighttime right before bed, and before you know it you’ll be zen as a kitten. Ok I totally just made that phrase up, but I like the visual 😉
So if you are like me, that is, someone who is a bit pressed for time but still wants to have a regular meditation practice, try this out! It only takes a minute a day and it really has improved my sense of well-being and equanimity.
Bonus advice: if at all possible, do this FIRST thing in the morning. Like even before coffee. It sets a peaceful tone for your day and your upcoming interactions with any kids/coworkers/partner/boss. They’ll thank me later.
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