Yesterday, it became evident to me that meditation and how to meditate is a subject that’s essential for establishing a foundation for your personal development program.

I have always considered meditation to be one of the main ingredients in any recipe for becoming successful but hadn’t thought of it as part of the platform from which to launch your personal development plan.

I’d thought of meditation as something to cover after the core elements of desire and belief. I was talking to my friend John (which might be his real name). The conversation turned to something that changed my mind about waiting until later to talk to you about meditation.

John was talking about the need to take a small dose of medication almost every night to be able to clear his mind of the many thoughts of the day and be able to go to sleep. That got me thinking about what I do when I have trouble sleeping and how it’s one of the little tricks I’ve learned over the years to keep me off medication and sitll pretty healthy.

The trick is, I meditate almost every night when I lay down to go to sleep. It clears my mind of all the thoughts and cares of the day and lets me go to sleep easily without pills.

Throught my extensive study and investigation into how the mind works I’ve learned that sleep through medication is not as healthful as natural sleep. Drugs, including alcohol, might help you fall asleep but they interfere with the natural sleep patterns that are necessary to get completely rested.

During a nights sleep, you go through several sleep cycles which are about ninety minutes long and vary from deep sleep (unconsciousness) to what you’ve probably heard referred to as REM. That’s your dream state which is in the alpha range of brain waves (near awake). If you interfere with these natural cycles, your sleep isn’t complete. That probably partly explains why, if you drink alcohol right before bed time, you often wake up feeling groggy and unrested.

I explain to John how I used meditation to fall asleep naturally and that got me thinking. That’s just one of the many benefits I get from meditating regularly. It became evident that it’s been a big part of the reason I’ve been able to overcome self limiting beliefs and to improve my self image to the point that I can believe in myself and my abilities to accomplish what I desire.

More about John later, but for now let’s talk about the benefits of meditation and how to meditate.

First, meditation isn’t magic. It’s simply directing your brain waves to a lower level. It’s something you do naturally every day just before you go to sleep and, sometimes during the day, when you’re daydreaming or “in a zone.”

Scientists have learned to measure brain waves and have classified brain wave activity into four (some five) different categories. They are:

• Beta - 14-21 cycles per second. This is the normal range when you’re awake and alert.
• Alpha - 7-17 cycles per second. Here you’re in light sleep, daydreaming or in meditation.
• Theta - 4-7 cycles per second. Deeper sleep or deep meditation. This is the level that monks strive for
• Delta - 0-4 cycles per second. Very deep sleep. Here, you’re almost comatose.

The idea of meditation is to slow down your brain so that it’s operating in the Alpha or Theta levels of brainwave function while you’re still awake. There are almost as many ways to meditate as there are kinds of food. Which is the best way to meditate?

the answert to that is - the one that works best for you!

Some say, like religions, that their way is the only true or right way. I find this to be nonsense. I have tried many different methods, bought several products and done a whole lot of reading about what scientists and other would-be experts say about meditation and have come to a few conclusion.

First, I’ll list what I believe to be fallacies about meditation.

• Only one way works, or is the best
• You need special equipment, tapes, pads, cushions, etc.
• It’s hard to learn.
• Special chants (mantras) are required.

Like I said earlier, the best way to meditate is the way that works best for you. Whatever you are most comfortable with is what will work best. If you find a certain place to go to, or body position that helps you relax more easily then use it. Some say you must sit in a lotus position or upright in a chair with both feet flat on the floor (or whatever). I usually do my meditation lying in bed flat on my back. If I’m tired, however, and don’t want to fall asleep during the meditation, I’ll sit in a comfortable chair. There are certainly no special pads, cushions, etc. that are essential. If you find something that makes the process easier for you, by all means, use it, but you can meditate sitting in a park on a bench or in the grass.

Learning to meditate certainly isn’t hard. In fact, when I first started learning, I tried too hard and hindered the process. All you need to do is relax, first the body, then the mind. If you concentrate on procedure your mind stays active and you defeat yourself.

I did find it helpful at first, to use a recorded message to guide me through the process. That takes some of the strain of trying to remember what to do next away. Eventually you learn the steps thoroughly and no longer need the tape or CD. Some methods use what are called binaural beats mixed with music to enhance or quicken the process. There’s nothing wrong with using them but they aren’t necessary. It may take a little longer to learn without them but, once you do, you can meditate anywhere without any need for anything but the ability to quiet your mind.

I’ve given a sample of a meditation procedure in my book Believe It! which you can get free by enrolling for my newsletter. You also get a mini-success course and, of course, my newsletter!

More about John. I explained one of the “tricks” I use to fall asleep easily when I’m having trouble turning off the “Windmills of My Mind.” It’s not a trick really, but rather, a procedure I learned in the Silva Life System. That’s the one program out of several I’ve bought that I have found most helpful in getting maximum benefit from my time meditating. It teaches what the people at Silva call “Dynamic Meditation.” John became very interested in what I was saying because he understands the bad side effects of taking medication to go to sleep. That’s what got me thinking I should share this with you.

Besides the regular benefits of relaxing, relieving stress, and going to sleep more easily, there are a series of lessons on how to use meditation for such things as: losing weight, quitting bad habits, becoming more creative, improving your health, becoming more positive and enthusiastic, and even, becoming more intuitive. I highly recommend it. I’ve had it for several months and still go through one or more of the modules frequently to reinforce what I learned the first time.

The Silva Life System comes in two versions. One is a collection of ten CD’s, plus bonuses, which are mailed to you in a nice case to keep them in. The other (less expensive) version is the same material but in down loadable form (MP3″s).

I can’t say enough good about the Silva Life System. I highly recommend it. You can learn more about it here.

If you’re on too tight of a budget and/or want something to compare it with, you can get a simple meditation script which you can learn or record and use from my book Believe It! Either way, I can’t stress too strongly the benefits you’ll get from meditating. It can be a major tool to use to get to the right frame of mind to start your journey to success.

Duane

P.S. More information about the Silva Life System HERE

More information about Believe It! book, mini-success course and my newsletter HERE

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