September 29th, 2014 I’m grateful for waffles and peanut butter. I’m grateful for my bike ride with Nate in Discovery Park and the fall colors that are out. I’m grateful for Fleet Foxes. I’m grateful that I’m in a position to help kids. I’m grateful that I’m getting better at arguing with my own irrational thoughts. Those are the words that I wrote nearly four years ago in… Read More »Gratitude Journaling
As I’ve discussed in recent posts, meditation is the primary method for deliberately cultivating the four skills of mindfulness: presence, curiosity, acceptance, and non-attachment. But let us now answer the question posed by George Leonard, author of Mastery: “Could all of us reclaim lost hours of our lives by making everything—the commonplace along with the extraordinary—a part of our practice?” 1 The answer, as we’ll see, is yes. Meditation is… Read More »Everyday Mindfulness
Last week’s post was all about how to meditate, and the previous post was all about mindfulness and its benefits. Today, I’ll briefly explain the connection between the two. How does breathing meditation develop the four skills of mindfulness: presence, curiosity, acceptance, and non-attachment? Presence Presence is a balance between focus and awareness. In breathing meditation, you try to keep your attention on the sensation of your breath and repeatedly… Read More »How Does Meditation Cultivate Mindfulness?
Meditation is a collection of paradoxes. It is simultaneously the simplest thing to do and the hardest thing to do. It involves sitting and doing nothing, but it requires great effort. It relaxes the mind but also gives it a workout. And you benefit the most from meditation when you’re really bad at it. Let’s unwrap these paradoxes and get you set up to develop a consistent meditation practice. But… Read More »Meditation Made Simple