We often get anxious while meditating. We get distracted, and worry we're 'doing it wrong' / are 'bad at meditation'.

But being 'good at meditation' shouldn't be the goal.

Instead, aim to build self-awareness throughout the day. That's where the real benefits lie.

(*thread*)

1/ The only bad meditation session is the one you don't do.

Anytime you sit, you should feel proud for taking some time for yourself.

The distractions we encounter are the natural thoughts swimming inside us. No amount of meditation will make them go away.

You're doing fine.

2/ After meditating for years, I wondered: "Shouldn't I be an expert at this by now?"

Expectations can tarnish genuine efforts (if you let them).

Instead, just take a moment to "Begin Again", as though it's first your session.

Embrace the liberation of being an amateur.

3/ The goal of working out is not to become good at 'working out'. It's to become healthy.

Meditation is the same way.

Its purpose is to build our 'awareness' muscles, by sitting with our thoughts.

We're not 'solving' thoughts. We're sitting with them. We're observing them.

4/ The more you do this, the stronger your observation / awareness muscles become.

That's when the real benefits start to come in.

The biggest benefit of meditation is gained throughout the day, not during meditation.

5/ Start with small moments of mindfulness as you go about your day.

Let's say you find yourself ruminating on a topic, or deeply hurt / angry about something.

Instead of reacting immediately, can you take a moment to observe this thought?

6/ Just by *looking* at it, you'll immediately find that the thought loses power.

You can learn from it. Ask yourself *why* it's capturing you so much. Really explore this question. The answer may surprise you.

You can learn from every single one of these moments of awareness.

7/ Consider the compound benefits if you continued to do this.

More and more moments of awareness throughout your days will teach you more and more about yourself.

In this way, your daily observations become far more valuable than a 10-min meditation session.

8/ So, don't worry about having a perfect meditation session.

Let it be messy.

Let it be full of distractions.

Let it be whatever it is.

Let it be.

9/ Focus on moments of awareness.

Start by trying to have a single moment of awareness at some point in your day.

If it taught you something, consider writing it down in a journal. This way, you reinforce these precious moments of learning.

10/ Bit by bit, you'll learn more about yourself.

Bit by bit, you can start to change yourself.

Your peers will also benefit from these changes, because you are changing the very person that is being presented to them.

Self-awareness can become your superpower.

11/ Self awareness led to the discovery of my need for permission

(the replies in this thread also worth exploring)

https://twitter.com/daretorant/status/1283896237062680576?s=21 https://twitter.com/daretorant/status/1283896237062680576