How to Meditate

You’ll hear us discussing mindfulness a lot and we realize it’s not always clear at first glance how meditation fits into the picture. Here’s our definition of those two terms:

• Mindfulness is the practice of bringing your awareness to the current moment without judgment. It could be focusing on what you’re currently experiencing/engaged in, your inner or outer sensations, or your emotions.
• Meditation is a more general term that applies to the many different ways we can heighten our level of consciousness and gain some control or self-regulation over it. Mindfulness is a technique often used in meditation, but meditation can be practiced in many other ways as well, such as through movement, stillness, mantras, or emptying the mind entirely.

Generally, mindfulness is considered one of the easiest ways to get started with meditation and one of the more beginner-friendly forms of meditation.

Yes and no. Meditation can be as simple as taking a moment or two to reflect on the present moment, or as complex as an hour-long ritual involving mindful stretching, breathing, and/or clearing your mind completely. In the case of mindfulness meditation, you can easily expand upon the basic S.T.O.P framework by finding a quiet space at home to sit and focus on the present for 5-15 minutes.

It’s up to you how far you want to take it and to figure out which techniques work best for you! If you’d like to dig in a little further and try out a variety of meditation techniques, take our 14-day email meditation challenge.