Meditation can feel daunting when you’re just starting out. I remember when I first tried it — I thought I had to sit in silence for ages with a completely clear mind. Within seconds, my thoughts were racing, and I felt like I was doing it “wrong.” But over time, I realised meditation isn’t about perfection. It’s about creating a gentle habit of pausing, breathing, and being present.
And the more I practiced, the more I noticed my mindset shift. Slowly, the constant overthinking began to soften, and moments of peace started to take its place.
If you’re curious about beginning, here are some steps that helped me get started — and might help you too.
1. Start Small (Really Small)
When I began, I would do meditation sessions off of YouTube, just the 5 minute sessions that were fully guided. Honestly, that felt long enough at first! With time, I started to feel more comfortable to do sessions that lasted 20 or 30 minutes. Start small and you’ll be surprised how naturally it grows. I would highly recommend using Headspace for guided meditation, however it is very easy to find good guided meditation on YouTube for free as well!
2. Find Your Spot
For me, it was the corner of my bedroom with a cushion and a blanket. It doesn’t have to be fancy. Just somewhere you feel calm. Having a “go-to spot” made it easier to show up each day. If you’re looking to create a spot I would highly recommend the meditation cushion I use, and the following diffuser as well – it helps me to get in the mood and adds a little something extra to the experience of meditating.
3. Focus on the Breath
At the beginning, I simply noticed my breathing — the inhale and the exhale. My mind wandered (a lot!), but I learned that’s normal. Each time I caught myself drifting, I just brought my attention back to the breath. This is what meditation is sometimes all about, keeping a focus requires failing sometimes, so that you can bring it back.
4. Figure out what type of mediation is for you
There are so many different styles of meditation out there, some of them are very tradition and ancient practices, however I like to think of meditation as being very flexible. It can be as simple as taking 30 seconds to do some breathing exercises, or go for a 10 minute walk and listen to some music. Within classic meditational practices, there are all kinds of different techniques that you may find are more useful that others – check out this article that goes into some more detail: Four Powerful Meditation Techniques to Combat Anxitey. Here are two affordable instant downloads that will help you start your meditation journey:
5. Make It Part of Your Routine
What worked best for me was attaching meditation to my morning coffee. I’d sit for five minutes right before drinking it. Linking it to something I already did daily made the habit stick. Most people find that the best times to squeeze in a meditation session is either the morning or the evening just before going to sleep. In order to help motivate myself get into the habit of practising mindfulness and meditation, I used the following habit tracker (which can of course be used for lots of other habits such as working out, cleaning etc!).
