Let's start together

Have you ever said ..

"One day I am going to learn to meditate?"

The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course  run's for 31 days .. and provides you with instructions, tips, links, audio files and general MOTIVATION and SUPPORT to start your very own meditation practice .. all from the comfort of your home, office, holiday destination even the beach!

Here's some of what we will cover in the E-Course:

• the nuts n' bolts of meditation: finding the right posture, preparing a meditation space, committing to sit and more on the 'how' and 'why'
• understanding some of the key principles found in most meditation techniques, some of the key challenges (and antidotes) and misconceptions around meditation, and how to know if you are doing it right
• we explore a range of different meditation practices so that you can find the best practice for you (this is the SECRET!), we shall explore : mindfulness of body and breath, mantra/affirmation, meditative exercises and movement practices
• learn how to integrate mindfulness and meditation into your daily life (today and forever)
• start implementing some simple, straightforward and immediately beneficial meditative exercises to release stress and rising tension, 'right in the heat of the moment'
• find out what all the fuss is about .. why highly creative and inspirational leaders (and organisations) are learning meditation and why you are now hearing about 'Mindfulness' in the media, education, human resources and health sectors.

*as well, our daily email is designed to support and inspire you to continue committing to a daily meditation practice, acting as a gentle reminder to pause, rest and refresh; you also have access to our private blog for additional resources if you wish to delve a little deeper.

Learning how to meditate with this E-Course is great if you:

• Want to try meditation in the comfort of your own home
• Can't make it to a class .. or dislike group classes in anything!
• Want a little taste before committing to a longer course
• Have a little time coming up and you REALLY want to get to those things 'you have been meaning to do .. forever'  (like meditation)
• Find that the year is racing past .. and your still wondering how to manage the overwhelm
• Your ready .. and it's about time!

What does the content look like:

STARTING BEFORE WE REALLY START

The weekend before the E-Course starts we will e-mail you a little pack of meditative goodies to get you started.   Think of this as some tips to get you 'in the mood' .. like a look at Inspiring People Who Meditate and Why and What The Brain Does in Meditation .. and meet me (Sarah)  your guide for the whole 31 days.

Bonuses: A Doorhang to print out and use at home (or the office) to let those around you know that you do not want to be interrupted, along with a Meditation Calendar to track your progress and commitment.

HOW IS THE E-COURSE STRUCTURED

Each morning (at sunrise or thereabouts) you will receive an email with a theme for the day. 
A theme gives our day a 'flavour' that we can more easily remember.  Day 1 our theme is The Breathe and you will learn about the power of your breath and how most of us tend to breathe ineffectively, and we will learn our first Meditative Exercise which is a short practice to introduce some of the key concepts of meditation.  

Each day a new theme to support your understanding of meditation and practices to support you in your ability to sit and develop your own regular meditation practice.

Week 1 : We focus on the breathe as our anchor in meditation, along with some insight into finding and maintaining your motivation, what to do about thinking and building a strong foundation of mindfulness.  Meditative Exercises will support you in starting and sitting for 2 to 10 minutes.

Week 2 : The power of building the habit of meditation, why we have different meditation techniques and what happens in our mind when we are meditating.  An on-line guided meditation practice will engage and delight you, and surprise you when you find yourself enjoying a seated 20 minute practice.

Week 3 : Exploring a mantra practice, the magic of silence and 'non-doing' in meditation and being mindful in meditation and in life. Expanding your practice to comfortably sit for 20minutes (or longer) and how to make this gentle transition.

Week 4 : Body awareness both when in a seated position and when walking, some common challenges (and antidotes) in meditation and how to integrate Meditative Exercises and longer traditional techniques into your daily life.  

The Quiet Mind Mediation E-Course is only $62 .. 

just $2 per day to get started!

The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course will provide you with the tools and knowledge so that you can start your own personal meditation practice and is built around our popular Exploring Meditation Course which has been running real-life classes for more than five years.  Along with all the wonderful insights from this well tested course .. there will also be additional tips, articles and insights from my own 20+years of meditation practice.

JOIN UP HERE

I look forward to sharing my passion for meditation with you and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact at sarah@quietmind.com.au

I look forward to meeting you soon .. Sarah 

"The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course has been a blessing in hectic times. I always wanted to start meditating but never found the time or the class that suits my needs, with the e-course I had the tools to develop my own practice from the very beginning.

As a beginner I loved the course because it guided me step by step to build a meditation practice that now I can use anytime I need it. And having Sarah’s support to tailor the homeworks to my personal circumstances and answering all my questions was like having my own particular teacher to guide me in this meditation journey.

Incorporating a regular meditation practice in my life has helped me improve my wellbeing and my productivity, now I feel better and more focused. And, any time I start feeling overwhelmed I just close my eyes and practice one of Sarah’s homework to reconnect with my breath and feel more calm and empowered.

If you ever wanted to meditate, but you don’t know where to start and how to build a practice that suits your lifestyle, I encourage you to take this course full of easy yet powerful homework with the steps you need to incorporate meditation into your life on a daily basis. "

Denise Da Costa from www.thecreativeorganiser.com

"Thank you for your wonderful meditation classes and emails - I completed the e-course and have been meditating nearly everyday since. I am finding a calmness and mindfulness that I love. I have read many meditation books and done many guided meditations but I never really formed a meditation habit. Your course resonated with me and I believe I have now formed a wonderful meditation habit - one which I can guide myself now! Thank you" ~ Catherine.

Lovely feedback

Such a beautiful message received today from Catherine who recently completed our Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course. 

"Thank you for your wonderful meditation classes and emails - I completed the e-course and have been meditating nearly everyday since. I am finding a calmness and mindfulness that I love. I have read many meditation books and done many guided meditations but I never really formed a meditation habit. Your course resonated with me and I believe I have now formed a wonderful meditation habit - one which I can guide myself now! Thank you".

Gratitude changes everything ..

Sharing meditation is my heart work.  

From my first meditation experience (as a 17yo) I held a secret yearning to share this amazing life tool with others.  In recent years that desire to share my experience and support others on their meditation journey has been .. consuming!

Finding creative, enticing and nourishing ways to encourage others to sit and find that deep stillness within .. can be so exciting and also so challenging. Some days (like today) when projects are slow to materialize and I am not teaching (and feeling a little discouraged in my mission) .. I am full of gratitude and thanks for the magical message that has arrived from the lovely Denise who recently completed our Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course .. thanks from a swelling heart!

" The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course has been a blessing in hectic times. I always wanted to start meditating but never found the time or the class that suits my needs, with the e-course I had the tools to develop my own practice from the very beginning.

As a beginner I loved the course because it guided me step by step to build a meditation practice that now I can use anytime I need it. And having Sarah’s support to tailor the homeworks to my personal circumstances and answering all my questions was like having my own particular teacher to guide me in this meditation journey.

Incorporating a regular meditation practice in my life has helped me improve my wellbeing and my productivity, now I feel better and more focused. And, any time I start feeling overwhelmed I just close my eyes and practice one of Sarah’s homework to reconnect with my breath and feel more calm and empowered.

If you ever wanted to meditate, but you don’t know where to start and how to build a practice that suits your lifestyle, I encourage you to take this course full of easy yet powerful homework with the steps you need to incorporate meditation in your daily basis. "

Denise Da Costa 

www.thecreativeorganiser.com

Meditation this morning ..

This is where I meditated this morning.

By the pool .. sitting quietly with the sound of running water, smell of frangipanis and warm tropical breeze on my skin.

And the mozzies!

Sitting with the beautiful and the annoying .. 

the mish mash of life in the moment

Having a regular meditation practice allows me to just stop where I am, in any moment that I choose, and find refuge within.  It is like coming home.

I know that a regular meditation practice is totally life affirming and life supporting .. that is why I designed the Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course to share this ancient life tool with those who perhaps cannot get to a class, or simply don't DO classes, or if your stuck at the desk or busy with life.

The E-Course is perfect if you are on holiday, in the office or recuperating in bed.  Wherever you are right now .. you can just START.

There is no more perfect time than NOW

E-Course starts 1st September $62

 

Doing it ONLINE

We are about to launch our next Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course 

Starting 1st SEPTEMBER 2014 .. this is a 31 Day email based course .. every morning we send you an email with instructions for the day, along with a little inspiration, nourishment and support to get you started in building a regular meditation practice.

We are there with you every day .. 

Nine Round Breath Exercise

We know there is a very direct relationship between our breath and our level of stress.

When we are stressed or anxious we tend to breathe high in the chest with short rapid inhalations and very little exhalation .. when angry we hold onto our breath. 

We can however turn things around quite dramatically – and positively affect our stress levels - by changing our breathing. 

Simply deepening and lengthening the breath can assist us in rapidly reducing stress and tension anywhere and anytime we choose ~ and when you balance your breath you balance your mind. 

The Nine Round Breath Exercise is wonderful for settling the mind and stabilizing your focus prior to a longer period of meditation practice BUT it is also a great daily life practice when you find your mind excessively manic or overwhelmed. 

This is just one of the Meditative Exercises that I include in our Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course (starting 1st NOVEMBER 2014).

In this guided practice below .. were are going to imagine that we are alternating our breath through one nostril at a time .. strange as it sounds! 

Let me know how you go in the comments below!

The secret to meditation

The secret to meditation? 

It's a practice

Guided Meditation: Find the Stillness

I would you like to share with you one of my guided meditations.  This is a Breath Awareness Meditation and is one of the more 'traditional' meditation practices that I have recorded on my Find The Stillness CD.

Day 21 of the E-Course

"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy"
~Thich Nhat Hanh

The participants of our Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course (which started on the 1st January) are current exploring Mindfulness  practices .. it is Day 21 of our 31 Day course. 

Mindfulness is an ancient practice that simply requires us to attend non-judgementally to the NOW .. rather than bouncing around between past, future and fantasy. 

Mindfulness = being mindful of the present moment 

The magic of mindfulness is that when we truly rest our focus on the present moment .. everything seems to slow down and we begin to 'see' what is actually happening around and within us. By deliberately bringing our full attention to what we are doing right in this moment (removing auto pilot).. with no judgement, preference or commentary .. we experience a greater sense of awareness of self, body and mind. 

One of the most popular meditation practices that I introduce in class (and on the E-Course) is the Half-Smile Meditation .. a practice that is used to maintain mindfulness.

Smiling is proven to have a positive effect on us.  Research on facial expressions and emotions found that if you make the facial expression of a particular emotion – you actually will feel that emotion. A half-smile (even holding a pencil between the teeth to force the edges of your mouth to curl up) has been shown to help stimulate positive emotions.  So you can purposefully attract peacefulness just be holding a half-smile .. even when you don’t truly feel like smiling!

Holding a gentle half-smile while you meditate can provide something more concrete to hold our focus.  Just rest your lips into a slightly upturned posture .. keeping a relaxed face .. adopting a serene facial expression. And when you get distracted by a thought, memory or dream (as you will) just notice that you have been distracted, notice if you have dropped your half-smile, and when you are ready simply return to the next inhalation and reconnect with your half-smile.

Remember your body communicates with your mind.

The morning half-smile

Try placing a small sign at the end of your bed or on your bedside table so that the word "smile" appears first thing when you open your eyes in the morning. This sign will serve as a reminder and you can then use the moments before getting up to focus on the breath .. inhale .. exhale for three breaths gently while maintaining a half-smile.

The half-smile when irritated

When you find yourself starting to react to something or someone try the half smile immediately. Inhale and exhale quietly for three breaths .. maintaining that beautiful half-smile both externally and internally.

*Our NEXT E-COURSE is happening 1st March 2014 .. and we have an Early Bird Special for registrations before 10th February .. you can sign up HERE*

2 Days to JOIN our Meditation E-Course

Meditation as a Habit

Current thinking holds that it takes between 25-30 days to establish a HABIT .. and to establish that new habit we need repetition and consistency. 

One of the first hurdles when starting anything new .. like learning to mediate .. is remembering to do it. 

JOIN US ON 1st JANUARY 2014 

The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course is designed around a daily email that acts as a trigger (or reminder) to continue with your learning .. and your sitting. 

And then .. there is a Theme

Another tool we provide is a daily theme .. because we love a simple word or phrase to summarize our focus for the day .. somewhat like a mantra. Themes include .. the Breathe, Listening, Sensing, Habits and Rituals.

The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course is designed to build on your knowledge and understanding of meditation each day for the month of January (31 days in total). 

We start with Meditative Exercises and gentle build our practice from there. 

In the beginning it is more about setting aside the time and turning up .. starting to make your meditation practice a daily habit. 

Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course starts 1st JAN 2014

Life Breath Meditative Exercise

Life Breath Meditative Exercise 

For twelve breath cycles (inhalation and exhalation = one breath cycle) we shall rest our awareness on our breath; 3 breaths with our hands gently across our belly; 3 breaths with hands at the chest/heart; 3 breaths just feeling the touch of air at the nostrils, and 3 breaths observing the natural & momentary pause that occurs at the end of the exhalation. 

Instructions 

* Take a moment to settle into a comfortable position either in a chair or lying on the floor. Make sure your back is straight and body relaxed. You may like to close your eyes - this allows us to feel a little more removed from the chaos around us and assists us in gently turning our attention inward. 

* Place both your hands on your lower belly and for 3 breaths (breathing in through your nose and out through the mouth) simply rest into the feeling of the slow rise and expansion of your belly through your hands. Take gentle un-rushed breaths and feel the gentle movement of your expanding then contracting belly (perhaps imagining a small balloon expanding deep inside your belly). This is diaphragmatic breathing which tells the body ‘all is ok, you can relax’. 

* When exhaling (through the mouth) allow the breath to ‘fall out’ of your body. You could also try gently engaging your abdominal muscles at the end of the exhalation to release the very last bit of air from your lungs. 

* Don’t rush to the next inhalation .. just wait. 

* For the next 3 breaths place your hands on your upper chest/heart area feeling the rib cage widen and the chest lift, noticing how your shoulders, chest and upper back move slightly as you inhale. Keep your shoulders relaxed and try not to hold your breath at the top of your inhalation (which signals to the body that danger is imminent). 

* Next rest your hands in your lap and for 3 breaths hold your awareness at the nostrils feeling the cool stream of air as you inhale, and the warmer breath as you breathe out. 

* Finally, for the final 3 breaths place all your attention on just the exhalation and the very slight pause that appears at the end of the exhalation (before the body asks you to breathe in again). Simply notice that momentary pause ... the stillness and emptiness of that one moment. 

Before finishing the exercise allow yourself a few moments just to sit and breathe normally, listening to the sounds around you and enjoying the quiet before you return to your day.

This Meditative Exercise is introduced in our Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course as a starting practice.  To teach us how to feel and observe our breath.

The E-Course starts 1st JANUARY 2014 with 31 daily emails designed to gently build on your knowledge and understanding of meditation. PLUS we are there to motivate, encourage and support you along the way .. it's the perfect start to a new year and you can participate while at the beach, at a ski resort or in the office.  EARLY BIRD SPECIAL until 22nd December.

Dive In. Meditate in 2014.

GROUNDING

Grounding is a very simple and popular practice that reconnects us with our body, our mind and the world around us. 

This practice can be even more powerful when taken outside, into nature as studies have shown that being barefoot on the grass can trigger a fall in blood pressure and heart rate, igniting our senses (which refreshes and invigorates) and providing us with a deeper sense of being ‘grounded’. 

In this exercise your task is to spend a few minutes without your shoes, connecting with the grass and earth beneath you. You imagine that through your feet are roots that extend and anchor you deep into the earth below you.

~ find a patch of green grass and remove your shoes 

~ take a moment to notice the broad sky above you 

~ notice the weather, the floating clouds, sunshine or wind 

~ close your eyes and really feel the breath of the day on your face 

~ smell the world around you and open your ears to your unique sound-scape ~ bring your awareness to your feet, the touch of the earth and grass beneath you 

~ imagine roots extending through your body and feet reaching deep into the earth below 

~ notice how the grass feels .. ticklish, coarse, wet, soft, squishy 

~ wiggle and swish your feet around .. delighted in the playfulness of the moment 

~ simply enjoy the touch of the grass beneath you and breath in the air for a few minutes 

~ when ready to finish .. make sure that you smile inwardly aware of just how wonderful it is to be part of the greater natural world in this moment.

Is it time .. to learn how to meditate?  

This January (the 1st of January actually) join in with our 31 Day Meditation E-Course where I shall guide, support and motivate you in your journey towards a regular, personal meditation practice.

Don't allow another year to pass.

Dive in and let's start together.

This New Year .. take the plunge and start meditating.

CHRISTMAS E-COURSE SPECIAL $50 (normally $62) TILL 22 DEC 2013

eCourse STARTS 1st SEPTEMBER

Have you ever said ..

 

"One day I am going to learn to meditate?"

 

Today I have been confirming new start-ups for our Meditation E-Course .. re-reading the Starter Pack and adding a few little extra features.   This is the fun part of my life, enjoying some time to be creative and take myself back to a little 'beginners mind' as I find new pictures and words to share meditation with you all.

 

There are some people who just can't make it to one of my classes, or don't really enjoy group classes, or want to start their meditation journey right now, right in the thick of their life or while at home on holiday.  This is why I put all my knowledge and 20year meditation practice into an online course.

 

The Quiet Mind Meditation E-Course run's for 31 days .. and provides you with a daily email with instructions, tips, links, guided meditations, private blog access and general MOTIVATION and SUPPORT to start your very own meditation practice .. all from the comfort of your home, office, holiday destination even the beach!

 

WE START : 1st September 2013

(Only $62 .. or $2 per day)

 

Here's some of what we will cover in the E-Course:

• the nuts & bolts of meditation: finding the right posture, preparing a meditation space, committing to sit and more on the 'how' and 'why'

 

• understanding some of the key principles found in most meditation techniques, some of the key challenges (and antidotes) and misconceptions around meditation, and how to know if you are doing it right

 

• we explore a range of different meditation practices so that you can find the best practice for you (this is key!), we look at mindfulness of body and breath, mantra/affirmation, meditative exercises and movement practices .. there are online guided practices to listen to also

 

• learn how to integrate mindfulness and meditation into your daily life (today and forever)

 

• start implementing some simple, straightforward and immediately beneficial meditative exercises to release stress and rising tension, 'right in the heat of the moment'

 

• find out what all the fuss is about .. why highly creative and inspirational leaders (and organisations) are learning meditation and why you are now hearing about 'Mindfulness' in the media, education, human resources and health sectors.