5 Meditation Tips for Beginners

Meditation is one of those words that conjures up this mystical idea, and apparently has a ton of benefits (according to people)! It sounds amazing, it sounds good for you, and it sounds relaxing as hell. But it’s not that easy, the whole sitting quietly with a perfectly blank mind in a room so quiet you could hear a pin drop. That probably sounds a little bit… extra. And here’s the thing: it is. Most beginners lose interest really quickly, and frankly I don’t blame y’all.

Here’s some good news, though, for anyone that just can’t seem to sit and do nothing and think nothing and be nothing. Meditation can be fun, it can be dynamic, and it can be all these things with all the alleged health benefits too. For anyone that has wanted to try meditation, but can’t seem to make it work for you: here are five meditation tips for beginners.

There is no one way to meditate.

This is the most important one out of all these tips, and it kind of condenses them all down perfectly. There is no one single way to meditate properly. Meditation is, first and foremost, a mindset. A calm, collected mind will set the stage for any meditation practice, whether it’s mindfulness, transcendental, kundalini, zazen, etc. There are dozens of types of meditation practices, and there’s bound to be one to suit you.

What I always recommend is start with mindfulness, or at least a slightly tweaked version. Next time you need to do a mindless task, take the opportunity and be mindless. Let yourself check out of whatever thoughts you have going on and focus your full attention on the one thing you’re doing at that moment. Make that the most important thing you’re doing at that moment, whether it’s folding clothes, drinking coffee. Whatever. Make it the full experience, focus on what your senses are picking up, and just tune into how you’re feeling.

Once you can do that comfortably and consistently, move on to other methods that intrigue you, other focuses that sound fun. Research them all and try them all! You’ll find a method that suits you best.

Use the time you have.

Something I hear a lot of people say about meditation is, “I don’t have any time for it!” And I don’t blame them for feeling that way. Meditation is marketed, at times, to be this time consuming, all consuming endeavor. And depending on your reasons for meditation, it may end up being that way. But for the average person, you don’t need an hour of meditation twice a day. We can’t all be Dwight Schrute, that would be ridiculous.

Whatever time you can devote is enough. Whether that’s five minutes or five hours. Any amount of time is better than none at all. If it’s a short session, a quick body scan meditation is great (here’s a five minute one!), or a breathing exercise. Five minutes of mindful, purposeful breathing is a hell of a lot better than an hour of scrolling through Instagram while you tell yourself you’re going to meditate (guilty as charged). Get creative, make your morning commute or your evening shower your meditation time! Since you can meditate in many different ways, you can find creative ways of fitting it into your daily schedule.

You don’t need a perfectly blank mind!

This is the other thing that I think gets a lot of people real wigged out, the idea of having to empty your mind. Hell it wigs me out, my brain just does not shut up sometimes. But the wonderful, wonderful news is that you don’t need a perfectly empty mind! Since there are so many different ways you can meditate, if you can’t clear your mind, there are meditative ways to focus your attention instead.

There are so, so, so many options, but here are a view of my favorites. Repeat a favorite mantra to yourself. This can be simple from, “I love myself”, to Sanskrit to anything that suits your purpose. I personally use three, depending on what I want to focus on. You can focus on a mandala, which is one of the original purposes for them, and just get lost in the artwork. Sacred images and candles work beautifully for this as well. Visualization meditations are a fantastic alternative, and it lets you be creative in your meditative space.

My favorite, however, is called pathworking. It combines visualization with focusing on an image, and I like to include tarot cards with this. You find an image that you like, I like to choose a tarot card, and you focus on the image. Get lost in the image and try and visualize the full sensory experience. And as you focus more on the image, and immersing yourself in it, it becomes a way to get lost in the imagery and symbolism. Very relaxing, interesting results, and I don’t have to worry about “is my mind clear enough?”

It doesn’t have to be dead quiet.

I’m not sure about you, but for some reason perfect quiet unnerves me. I’m like Ben Wyatt, traditional relaxation techniques just stress me out, and that includes the quiet. And sometimes, others find it hard to focus, as their brain starts filling in for the quiet with noise of its own. If you’re one of those people who cannot work in the quiet, this tip is for you.

Quiet is not the only option, and many practitioners feel that the pure quiet is actually one of the more advanced settings you can find yourself in when you take up a meditation practice. If you aren’t comfortable in the quiet, there are a ton of options, especially if you’re meditating on a particular focus. I tend to recommend music or binaural beats
(I frequently use this one for chakra balancing), something without lyrics so that you can zone out more easily.

Other fabulous options include, chimes, bells, singing bowls, guided meditations on youtube, or your own voice. Singing, chanting, praying can all help you get into a calm state where you can focus on what you want to work on.

Feel free to use tools and props.

Some people find that just sitting still isn’t relaxing, and that’s totally fine. For people who are fidgeters, or like something tactile to focus, there are lots of things that you can incorporate into your meditative practice that can help you focus and center yourself.

Using prayer beads, a rosary, or malas are an excellent option, as it also gives you the option to focus on a mantra or a chant as you work your way around it. If you don’t want something like that, but still want something that you can hold, crystals are a good choice, especially if you have beliefs about crystals (which, as a pagan, I do). Incense is a lovely option for people who find themselves calmed by smells, and eucalyptus is a good choice for that. Sometimes people like to use arts and crafts, such as drawing a zentangle or a mandala, so if you’re crafty and creative, maybe drawing or something like crochet or cross stitch could be a way to tap into the calm.

Finally, you don’t have to sit at all. Yoga, dance, stretching, running, are all valid ways to meditate without having to go the traditional route. Anything that allows you to quiet (not necessarily shut up) your mind is a valid tool.

And that’s it. Five meditation tips for beginners, five ways you can see what all the fuss is about. Meditation has really helped me make a lot of breakthroughs in my personal development, and it’s a tool that I think anyone and everyone can benefit from. I do also think there’s so much to be personalized within it. Make it yours, make it work, and make it better.