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Meditate
Meditation is growing in popularity and receiving praise from all directions:
from occupational therapists to mainstream media, people from myriad
different backgrounds are talking about the benefits of meditative work. But
to the uninitiated, meditation practice can appear daunting, time-consuming
and difficult to get to grips with. I personally avoided it for many years for
these exact reasons.
Like many people, I planned to meditate but never quite got round to it.
When I finally began, I found it awkward and wasn’t sure if I was doing it
right, or if it was working. My practice was inconsistent and I struggled to
see how it could be of benefit to me. Once I looked deeper into it, however, I
realized that I hadn’t understood meditation as well as I’d thought. I’d
overcomplicated it.
Once I committed myself to
30 consecutive days of focused meditation,
I began to feel a difference.
After a year of practising for 15 minutes a day, I noticed 
incredible
changes
within myself. Significantly, I found myself feeling angry far less often –
something that had troubled me in the past. My rage was absent during
situations identical to earlier events that had provoked an intense emotional
response.
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I also noticed a new ability to remain calm and at peace in the midst of chaos.
I had more conscious control over my thoughts. As a result, I felt more joyful
more often.
I couldn’t ignore these changes.
Meditation eases the resistance that your ego creates. This brings a sense of
calm, clarity and enhanced patience. I learn profound lessons from intuitive
thoughts during my practice, and this access to my inner wisdom illuminates
answers to any questions I’ve been struggling with. When I need to raise my
vibration, I know that meditation will restore good feelings.
This might seem strange. Many people think the goal of meditation is to clear
the mind of thoughts. But this is a misconception: actually, meditation is
really 
concentration
. Meditation helps you arrive at conscious awareness of
the present moment – and that’s a powerful tool to use in every part of your
life.
You practise meditation by being fully present in the moment via your
senses, while calmly observing your thoughts, emotions and bodily
sensations – from a distance, without judgement.
I’d like to take you through a short relaxation meditation that you can do
right now. You just need a pen, some paper and a quiet moment.