Demystifying Meditation: The Truth about Why there are no time requirements for practice
6 Ways to Use Mindfulness to Meditate when you have little to no time
In this day in age, everyone is busy with something or another. Whether it juggling family, work, social life, or our persistent presence on social media, it often leaves little to no time to designate time for self-care, let alone meditation. Whether you’re in the beginning stages of practice or an experienced practitioner, at some point or another time has played a significant factor in sidelining your efforts to maintain a consistent practice.
Luckily, there is good news. Contrary to popular belief you can develop a consistent practice with as little as three to five minutes per day.
This post will explore six ways to meditate when you have little to no time. Bottom line time does not have to be the deterring factor that keeps you from committing to a daily practice.
Time: Perception is Reality
In recent years meditation has been touted as one of the best if not the best way to combat stress, and burnout. Likewise, its innumerable benefits are touted on a daily basis from social media, ads, apps, and practically everywhere else imaginable.
So naturally, when it comes to meditation, the notion that one must be able to sit in complete uninterrupted silence, for a significant period of time, on a daily basis is aspirational at best. Adding in self-critique, judgment, and an indiscernible amount of pressure to quickly get on board to reap its many benefits creates a mounting sense of urgency. Like with most things when there’s a sense of urgency there’s an increasing desire to skip the beginning steps and jump right into the deep end.
Interestingly there are many areas in which this approach works perfectly well. However, meditation is not one. Time is a relative construct. Meaning our perception of time varies depending on the particular task at hand. As a collective, time practically flies by whenever we find ourselves doing something that we absolutely love.
Inversely, anytime we find ourselves engulfed in the very things that bring us joy, time appears to fly by. Perhaps you can relate. I can recall times when I would introduce myself to a complete stranger and within a matter of minutes, I found myself engulfed into deep conversation. The next thing you know, hours had flown by when in actuality it merely felt like a matter of minutes. Practically within a relatively short period of time we essentially went from strangers to very close friends.
Alternatively, when it comes to doing the very things that we absolutely disdain, time can seem as if it practically stands still. As I reflect back, I can clearly remember my experience with my very first summer job as if it were yesterday. Here I was, working my very first job, which ideally promised to be an enlightening experience as it involved working with a prominent government agency monitoring global satellite readings for the meteorological forecasts. Initially, all was well as I intently took in the space observing and shadowing others along the way. As the weeks began to creep by, it soon became inherently clear to me that I wasn’t assigned enough work to completely fill a workday.
At best I had enough work to take up three hours, leaving five hours for me to creatively occupy my time. All the while balancing tasks, so that it did not appear that I had nothing to do. In an effort to remain engaged while maintaining the illusion that I was busy, I would frequently ask for additional tasks and assignments only to be re-directed to read agency guidance documents.
So there I was, regulated to read every agency guidance document day in and day out. With every paper and regulatory document I read, I was that much closer to putting my head on my desk and falling asleep. In all, it equated to reading every page of the dictionary from cover to cover. It literally took everything in me, and then some to keep myself from drifting off to sleep. Minutes inched by to no avail, as the days were endless. Fridays, felt more like an eternity than an eight-hour day.
In all, I did everything I possibly could to occupy myself to resist the very thing that my mind and body yearned for, sleep and rest. There’s just something about maintaining a sense of alertness when time is perceived as a never-ending loop that keeps you stuck in, uncomfortability. Much like this as well as the many instances, when time is perceived as standing still, it’s equally challenging to keep ourselves engaged. The same reigns true when it comes to meditation.
Time: A Likely Excuse to Not Practice
When it comes to meditation, there’s this implied notion that one must designate a significant amount of time to practice, in order for it to “work.” This is a common misperception, as there are no time constraints. Inherently, meditation is an individualized practice, that meets you exactly where you are. Meaning you can deepen and expand your practice as need be, to suit your evolving needs.
Being that so many of us have so little available time to add yet another thing to their to do list, time is often a deterrent to practice. So like most things, you must crawl before you can walk. This means consistency yields proficiency. In essence, time is one of the main things that we perceive we have too little of. From a nonexistent work-life balance, pets, and young children who demand your constant awareness and attention, to the many other obligations and demands that pull us in polarizing directions, time is one of those things that many of us struggle to manage.
Although there is no universal timeframe for practice, it is widely accepted that true practice is longer than three to five minutes. So why start off small with a manner of a few short minutes, when you can dive off the deep end and practice for twenty minutes or longer. Like most, I shared this same approach when it came to embracing new practices. However, it was a complete failure when it came to meditation.
Why there are No Time Minimums for Practice
Unlike most things which often have time requirements for effectiveness, meditation is not one of them. Perception is reality, this equally holds true when it comes to meditation. In our day-to-day lives, time practically guides our every move. Essentially we are judged and measured by our relationship to time. When we are early, it can have a positive effect. Whereas, lateness often has a negative connotation. Essentially our waking and sleep hours are governed and guided by our relation to time. So when it comes to mediation, it calls us to operate within the unfamiliar space of no time.
By no time it doesn’t mean that time is not unfolding on a second by second basis, it simply means that we disconnect ourselves from our conscious awareness of it taking place. The mere practice of closing our eyes essentially takes us out of time. Meaning we are unable to consciously discern how much time is passing us by.
This often activates our imagination, often putting it into overdrive as it seeks to mentally calculate the amount of time that’s actively passing by. This is why novice practitioners practicing with as little as five minutes or less perceive that time is at a standstill.
With consistent practice and consistency, this same practice can evolve and feel as if only a few seconds have passed. This in itself brings about a few questions. If you detach your awareness from time by closing your eyes, how do you in fact know how much time has actually passed? So glad you asked. With the advent of smartphones, watches, other timers, and alarms, there are a plethora of supportive tools that can access other senses by alerting us to the passage of time.
The Power of Mindfulness: The Beauty of Begining Exactly Where You Are
When it comes to practices that can dramatically change our lives for the better, who wouldn’t want to completely immerse themselves into meditation. Despite our best intentions, practicing for longer than we are able can only deter us from fully embracing the practice. Diving in headfirst, regardless of prior exposure, and experience may work for a number of things. However, meditation is not one of them. As your capacity for meditation expands with frequency and consistency, so does your ability to extend the length of your practice.
We can have the best of intentions when it comes to meditation. However, in spite of our best intentions, there are an immeasurable number of things that are outside of our control that can change the course of our plans. Primarily time, and our availability to designate a specific amount of time to practice on a consistent basis. The good news is that we can tap into a number of supportive practices to aid us in remaining aligned with our intentions.
When it comes to mediation, using the practice of acceptance, non-attachment, non-judgment, detachment from our physical environment, and graciousness, and journaling, can support us to shift our awareness away from time and onto the present moment. This essentially reinforces the beauty of mediation, in that you can cultivate a practice that meets you exactly where you are.
If you are a novice, you can start out with as little as two to three minutes, build your capacity to redirect your awareness away from time and extend the duration of your meditation for as long as need be to meet your evolving needs. Essentially, there is no need to contort, change, or compare your journey to anyone else. Simply tap into practices that support you to evolve your practice.
5 Ways to Use Mindfulness to Meditate when you have little to no time
1. Acceptance
Whenever you are seeking to embrace a new practice, objectively observe where you are in your journey. Release any resistance to what is and accept where you are. Meaning if you are completely new to meditation, release any urge to jump off the deep end, regulating yourself to practice for longer than you are able.
2. Non-attachment
When embracing something new, we often use others’ journeys as a measure of what is possible for ourselves. However, we are all unique emanations of the Divine. Meaning there is no comparison as each individual’s journey is unique. Therefore, you can reference another’s a journey as a guide. However, practice non-attachment to the outcome. In essence, what worked for another doesn’t equate to it unfolding for you in the same manner. The practice of non-attachment frees you to experience each and every moment as it unfolds.
3. Non-Judgement
As a collective, we are often our biggest critic, holding ourselves to a higher standard than anyone else. Understandably this places a tremendous burden on us to hold ourselves to unrealistic expectations. Releasing and practicing non-judgment frees us to be open, and receptive for things to unfold for our highest and best good.
4. Detach from your physical environment
Meditation can be done in a variety of ways, closed eyes, quiet environment, stillness, open eyes, or walking. There are absolutely innumerable ways in which you can engage in the practice. However, internal and external distractions are prevalent. Sitting in a quiet still environment, with closed eyes, aids you in detaching from the physical environment. Light, noise, and movement, are tremendously distracting. Reducing your exposure to these elements supports you to sit in silence.
5. Graciousness
There are a tremendous amount of things that are outside of our control. In fact, the only thing we do have conscious control over is our behavior and actions. As a collective, we often hold ourselves to a higher standard. Therefore, when things don’t unfold as we envisioned feelings of guilt, shame, and regret, often fill our being lowering our mood and vibrational frequency. Essentially life happens, graciousness provides us understanding, and compassion, which frees us from the energetically charged emotions that lower our vibration.
6. Journaling
Putting pen to paper, typing, or using audio recordings to track your practice provides us with tangible documentation of your progress.
Commit to stating off small with as little as three minutes a session. Designate a distinct time to sit in uninterrupted silence. Preferable the same time, in the same spot, on a daily basis. Ensure you are in a space that allows you to reduce the amount of stimuli that can disrupt your practice. Note it is nearly impossible to eliminate all possibilities of distraction.
Document your journey on your preferred medium. Note your experience as well as your perception of time. Documentation can be as brief as a few short lines. Gradually begin to extend yout practice as your capacity expands.
If this post, resonates with you, I’d love to hear from you. Share your experience with racing thoughts, as well as what has supported you to deepen your practice. Drop a comment below.