21-Day Meditation Challenge
Experts say that it takes 21 days to form a new habit. The intention for this meditation challenge is for you to spend just 2 minutes in stillness, every day, for 21 days. It is our hope and prayer that by the end of the 21 days you have created a life-changing habit and have begun a wonderful mindfulness practice that you can benefit from for the rest of your life.
Getting Started
Setting yourself set up for success is an important thing to think about before you begin your challenge. You want to make sure that you have everything in place to help you reach your goal. We have identified 2 steps that will increase the chances that you will stick to your commitment of spending time in stillness each day.
Step One: Set up a Permanent Place for Meditation
Having a place already set up and ready to go will make it much more likely for you to meditate each day. Find a place in your home that is quiet and away from all the action. A corner of a bedroom works perfectly. Make the area special and designated to your practice. A yoga mat, meditation cushion or a little rug help create a defined floor space. Use a box or a low table to create a centering, sacred area and place on it anything that brings about peace, love or joy. For example: your meditation rocks, essential oil diffuser, candle, meaningful words or photographs, a music source, timer. When you take the time to create this purposeful, thought-out area, you will feel beckoned to it and look forward to your time spent there each day.
Step Two: Set a Time of Day
Pick a time of the day that works well for you. Some people like to meditate first thing in the morning or right after their morning shower. Others may prefer mid-afternoon or right before bed. Whatever time works best for you, stick to it. Making meditation part of your daily routine will increase the likelihood that it will become a life-long habit. The wonderful thing about meditation is that once you have completed your challenge, you feel comfortable with your practice, and you are feeling the amazing benefits, you can then choose to do it anytime and anywhere. It will become a tool that you can call upon day or night, no matter where you are.
Where do the Rocks Come in?
The rocks can be used in many ways, but the original thought was that they could be used as intentions and as a way to track your progress during your challenge.
Intentions: If you pull out the stone, "be you", for example, you may reflect on how much of your life you spend being your true self and how much of your life you spend being someone who other people want you to be. Sit and think about how you can be more yourself. What would that look like, feel like, sound like? After your reflections, you may say aloud, "may this meditation help me have the courage to be my true self more often". You have set an intention for your meditation. It it's important to let go of the thinking then, and begin your time in silence.
Tracking Progress: After you sit in stillness for at least 2 minutes each day, you can place your stone in a jar. When your jar is full, your challenge is complete!
Intentions: If you pull out the stone, "be you", for example, you may reflect on how much of your life you spend being your true self and how much of your life you spend being someone who other people want you to be. Sit and think about how you can be more yourself. What would that look like, feel like, sound like? After your reflections, you may say aloud, "may this meditation help me have the courage to be my true self more often". You have set an intention for your meditation. It it's important to let go of the thinking then, and begin your time in silence.
Tracking Progress: After you sit in stillness for at least 2 minutes each day, you can place your stone in a jar. When your jar is full, your challenge is complete!
But How do I Meditate?
You may be wondering what to do during your 2 minutes of stillness. There is no right or wrong way to meditate and there are lots of ways that you can experiment with to see which you feel most comfortable with. The easiest and simplest way, we believe, to begin a meditation practice is to put on some calming instrumental music, close your eyes and simply be. You can sit cross-legged or you can lie on your back. Take nice long, calming breathes in and out your nose and follow your breath as it tracks through your incredible body. Feel the rise and fall of your chest and your diaphragm. Take a moment to be in awe of what an incredible machine and gift your body is. Offer up gratitude for it. We spend a lot of time listing all the things we don't like about our body; take this moment to be grateful for all in does for you. Then go back to just focusing on your breath.
Thoughts will most certainly surface. The most important thing is that you don't become annoyed or frustrated with the thoughts. The first step is to notice them. Having that moment of separation between your true essence and the thoughts can be a breakthrough in and of itself. So if you notice that you are thinking, great!! Then just acknowledge the thought and let it go gently and try again to focus on your breath. If you become agitated or annoyed or frustrated or even bored, it is time to stop for the day. Chances are you managed 2 minutes and that is amazing.
Do the same the next day and you will see that over time you will become more comfortable with your practice. You will be amazed to watch your endurance go up as well. Don't be surprised if you have good meditating days and bad ones. It's much like the gym: we go regularly to strengthen our body, but some days we have great workouts and other days we just aren't feeling it at all. The same is true with meditation. We do it every day to strengthen our mind, but some days will be better than others. Be gentle with yourself.
Thoughts will most certainly surface. The most important thing is that you don't become annoyed or frustrated with the thoughts. The first step is to notice them. Having that moment of separation between your true essence and the thoughts can be a breakthrough in and of itself. So if you notice that you are thinking, great!! Then just acknowledge the thought and let it go gently and try again to focus on your breath. If you become agitated or annoyed or frustrated or even bored, it is time to stop for the day. Chances are you managed 2 minutes and that is amazing.
Do the same the next day and you will see that over time you will become more comfortable with your practice. You will be amazed to watch your endurance go up as well. Don't be surprised if you have good meditating days and bad ones. It's much like the gym: we go regularly to strengthen our body, but some days we have great workouts and other days we just aren't feeling it at all. The same is true with meditation. We do it every day to strengthen our mind, but some days will be better than others. Be gentle with yourself.