Feeling overwhelmed by the constant rush of our modern world? Between the never-ending emails, social media posts, and the pressure to keep up with the latest, it’s expected so many of us are burning out. But you can find peace amidst the chaos, right? Ever wanted to build a grounding routine but you keep losing the momentum? I hope these prayer and meditation habits for beginners can help you unlock a calmer, more centered you. Let’s see how a few minutes a day can level up your approach to stress and open the door to a happier, more peaceful you.
When we were just starting our young family, we lived on the outskirts of the metro. While our place was conveniently located to nearly everything, I found it tiresome because of the traffic. I have to wake up early if I don’t want to be late for work and lose precious time that could have been spent with my growing kids. Between going to work and caring for my family, I always felt drained and burned out. Going home to the province is one of our best decisions. The connection with nature is so calming and felt as if I’m meditating every day.
Meditation is one of many sought-after techniques most people try to do to calm themselves. Like praying, it has many known benefits that help people under stress find focus, calm, and peace of mind.
But how exactly can we integrate prayer and meditation into our busy schedules?
3 Simple Steps to Add Prayers and Meditation in Your Busy Schedule
If you are one of those caught in the daily grind or if you’re a freelancer, team leader, or entrepreneur who wants to start incorporating a new habit to help reduce stress through prayer and meditation, here are three simple steps to start with.
Audit your time.
Identify pockets of time that you can use is the starting point to build meditation habits for beginners. I find commuting a great time for meditation. What better use of time while stuck in traffic than to turn inward and do some praying or meditation, right? Lunch breaks or restroom breaks are also great times to ground yourself. In fact, any amount of time, whether it’s five or ten minutes, to take a breather, will benefit you greatly.
Reframe your priorities.
Consider replacing non-essential activities with prayer or meditation. For example, instead of scrolling through your social media during lunch breaks or during commute for the whole time, you may want to realign a part of it for praying or simple breathing exercises.
Start small.
If you can’t squeeze a regular meditation in your busy schedule, start with short sessions of 5-10 minutes. You can test at different times such as before you start your day or before you rest for the night. Once you build small meditation habits, it’s going to be easier to gradually grow from there.
5 Ways to Find Ease and Feel Authentic Joy in Praying and Meditation
Here are also some practical techniques to build meditation habits for beginners. Do these if you want to stop getting overwhelmed while you enjoy the tasks scheduled for the day.
Micro-prayers.
You can send quick, grateful prayers and intentions before diving into your daily tasks. Repeating positive affirmations or mantras can also help you cultivate a positive mindset so you don’t feel easily exhausted or overwhelmed throughout the day.
Meditations-on-the-go.
Experiment on different techniques like walking meditations, breath meditations or mantra meditation. All these require focusing on what you are currently doing and trying to feel every sensation that you are currently experiencing at the moment.
Walking meditations allows you to tune in to your body’s movements while you walk, focusing on the sensations of your feet touching the ground. You can engage all your senses by noticing the sights, the sounds and the feel of the air around you.
Breath meditation lets you focus on your breath, allowing you to release the built up tensions in your body while you take a deep, satisfying breath and relax as you exhale.
Mantra meditation can help you shift your focus by repeating a calming word like love, peace, harmony or hope, over and over whether in your mind or out loud. This helps promote inner peace and clarity.
Mini-meditation pauses or gratitude breaks.
This is a good meditation practice for beginners. It’s easy to do even when your schedule is full. You can set a reminder in your phone to take a pause, enjoy your cup of tea, light your favorite scented candle, or simply think about three things you are grateful for at that moment. This simple practice allows you to get back on your Zen zone which helps boost your positivity throughout the day.
Mindful relationship with technology.
Thanks to current advances in technology, there are many ways you can incorporate prayer and meditation in your schedule nowadays. Gratitude, prayer or meditation apps, podcasts, music, and guided meditations can be easily accessed and downloaded to listen to while you’re on the go. Check yourself whenever you feel the urge to check on your email or scroll through your social media. You can choose to be mindful of what you feed your mind and inner self amidst the constant digital hum.
Personalized practice
You don’t have to follow every meditation or prayer guide to the letter. Tailoring meditation habits for beginners depend on your specific needs and how much time you’re willing to give. Your prayer can be structured, in journal form or in contemplative silence. I do believe that the more personal your prayers are, the better it is. After all, it is a private conversation between you and God and it doesn’t require a permanently set schedule. In fact, you can converse with God while doing your daily activities, just like you would when talking to a friend while your hands are also busy with work.
You can also experiment with different types of meditation techniques until you find what works well for you. Whether it’s mindfulness, breathing, walking or mantra meditation, if you feel it working for you then go for it. I find sitting still trying to empty my mind of all worrying thoughts doesn’t really work for me. But watching the scenery before me during commutes does the trick so I do my meditations while on the way to my destination.
Like any activity, successful integration of prayer and meditation can be achieved through consistency. You need to treat it like an important appointment and schedule it accordingly. You can track your progress and reward yourself by celebrating every milestone.
Be patient and forgiving with yourself. Do not be discouraged if you miss a session or two. Remember, you can always start anew. The trick is to keep on trying until you find your own rhythm.
Conclusion
Prayer and meditation are integral parts of our lives and help keep us grounded and focused on things that really matter to us. Though the chaos of our everyday activities and the digital noise may be a constant presence, we can still incorporate prayer and meditation to find peace and calm in our daily life.
These two are powerful tools that can help us feel grounded, more centered and peaceful. So whether you’re a busy executive, a working mom, a student or a stay-at-home mom/dad, practicing these two tools can help organise the chaos of our busy lives, not by removing what keeps us fully immersed in, but by changing our attitudes and mindset.
A life of prayer and meditation helps keep us focused on positive things and to overcome any difficulty with a proactive attitude. Let’s live a life of prayer and meditation!
great reminder how prayer and meditation so important in our lives
really love your writing style sis Lei
more writings 🙂