Procrastination

"there are only two mistakes you can make in life.

First mistake is not to take the first step and the second is that having taken the first step

to not go all the way"

(The Buddha)

This is from our Monday Meditation Musing series (free weekly email to inspire your meditation). For the next few weeks we are taking a deeper look into some of the most common mistakes or challenges found when starting (or maintaining) a meditation practice. First, Procrastination ..

Procrastination is when you receive this email .. and your first thought is "I'll get to this later". Todat we are very much living in the 'knowledge age' and we are constantly bombarded with stuff .. details, words, thoughts, sights, sounds .. and many of us have settled into a state of perpetual edginess for the next big thing, the next shift, newness, entertainment value, more fun, more stuff ...

And so we have this constant urge to move on, jump ahead, find something more interesting, something more entertaining ..

But this means we miss the moment we have right now

And we then have to carry around the need to 'come back later', which in most cases we won't, which means we always feel like there is something we have forgotten, something we are not doing that we should or want to .. which leave a residue of missing something

So .. by reading this article now (or whatever it is you are procrastinating about doing) which may only taken two minutes to read .. you will feel comfortable that you have completed the tasks at hand, you can happily hit the delete button (or maybe save for another occasion, or pass it on ... yeah!) ... but .. it's done .. it's finished .. you did it .. i has been 'processed' by the mind .. task completed .. and you are freed from that sense of 'what did I mean/want/hope/plan to do today?'

Something like our meditation practice. Note: A 15 minute meditation practice .. is just 1/100th of your day. I mean really! .. we know there is no greater investment of our time .. so why put it off

JUST DO A LITTLE BIT
Imagine that getting started is the only thing in the world that matters
Just starting
Remove all distractions, turn off the phone and move away from the computer
Just sit there and focus on getting started
Not doing the whole meditation .. just starting
Close your eyes
Relax your body
Give yourself 60 seconds
Pay attention to your breathe
Notice when your mind urges you to switch to something else (Facebook will be there later, that call can wait, and you can eat in a minute
Just for this next breath .. breathe
Don't move, but notice the urge to
Don’t ruminate/fantasise/analyse, but notice the urge to
These urges will pass .. like puffy clouds in the sky above .. allow each one pass on by
Notice this breathe
Then, notice this breathe
As long as you like
Just a tiny step of peacefulness
Once started .. the rest will flow
Each time you have a moment
Just start
Without a goal or a timeframe
Just begin
And soon you will want to continue longer
Soon everything external will drop away and you will just rest
Meditation will find you
And then .. it's done
You found the starting point. this moment

This week seek out those moments when life slows down naturally, when the sunlight draws you to the couch or you are cocooned in your car or awake while the house still sleeps .. and close your eyes. No expectations, no 'I should meditate' .. just slip into the moment.

And as you notice your breath slowing, and your shoulders softening, and your mind stilling .. just rest .. just see what happens, what unfolds.

#1 PROCRASTINATION