Category: Minimalism

Meditation “A-Ha” Moment

Meditation is a trending topic that doesn’t seem to be losing steam. I think we all understand the immense benefits that can be found with a regular meditation practice, but I suspect many of you struggle as much as I do. I have read the hundreds, probably thousands, of articles helping me to understand how important meditation is and can be for my life. I’m just not getting there. I have taken short 2-4 hour classes, day long seminars, and month-long programs with homework and meetings 1-2 times per week. I’ve downloaded ALL.OF.THE.APPS. I’m not connecting and I keep thinking that maybe it’s just me, but I’m stubborn and I can’t accept that it’s just me.

Then this morning happened. I was listening to Episode 115 – Happier of The Minimalists podcast and they had Dan Harris on as a guest. He is the author of 10% Happier and most recently, Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics. Spoiler alert: I couldn’t download his books fast enough. They are both ready and waiting in my Audible queue. I won’t give up on this meditation “thing” despite the hours and hours I have poured into it with no success. Today’s breakthrough proved that my efforts were not in vain because they led me to Dan Harris.

I don’t think these are his exact words but Dan said something along the lines of, “Meditation is knowing you’re distracted and starting again.” Meditation is not a quiet, uninterrupted mind but yet this is what I have been striving for, for years. I took my first meditation course in college when I worked for a psychologists clinic. That’s coming up on almost ten years ago and I’m still not good at it! Dan’s words this morning really sparked something new inside of me though.

When I’m meditating and my mind is all over the damn place and focusing on my breath is just about the last thing I can do, I’m doing it! Not only am I doing it, I’m doing it well! Think about it this way, I’m a runner so this makes the most sense to me and I think sports tend to be the easiest to understand on a grander level. Those days when you are absolutely pumped to go on a run and you go out and kill it, what do you learn? Yeah, you had a great run and you were excited to do it, but what did you get out of it? Now think about a day when you have no desire to run, maybe even because you have a big challenge ahead of you. Your first real long run during marathon training, for example. When you get out there and do it, and achieve your goal despite not wanting to and/or thinking you can’t, what do learn?

Same thing goes for meditation. When you are calm and collected and sit down to meditate, of course you are going to think you are the most bad ass meditator the world has ever seen. Did you get anything from it though (other than the ego boost)? 🙂 Probably not. I know those are the times that I felt like I was doing it right but they were also the most disheartening because I just felt a little bit more calm. It was kind of a “what was the point?”, kind of moment.

After listening to Dan’s words on the podcast, I gave it another shot when I was far from cool and collected. Guess what? His words resonated. The old me would have berated myself and told myself I’m the worst meditator in the world and I should throw in the towel. To some extent, that’s basically what I’ve been doing for almost ten years. I’m a very active, on-the-go, highly productive type of person. So, naturally, meditation comes very difficult to me and if I feel like I’m not doing it right or “getting it”, I’m not going to waste my time.

I finally understand how people can meditate in the morning. Any expert I have ever listened to or read about has pushed the benefits of morning meditation. I always thought these people were bat-shit crazy. My mind is all over the damn place in the morning. That or I’m ready to fall back asleep if I try too early in the day! 🙂 I’m looking forward to trying it tomorrow morning when I’m feeling like a crazed lunatic. I’ll update you weekly on my progress with my newfound knowledge.

If you have insight and/or you have experience a breakthrough from this knowledge, please let me know! I would LOVE to chat about it!

With love,
Elizabeth ❤

Embracing Minimalism

Today did not start off great. I woke up tired and cranky (it was very much my own fault). I struggled through the first hour or two and all of a sudden I was in the zone. I’ve been struggling for a while with the clutter and organization in my house and it’s finally gotten to the “enough is enough” stage. This is the downside of working from home, I have to sit and stare at these kinds of problems. After finishing a big project with a tight deadline, I went on a rampage.

I started to break down the areas of my house that are bothering me the most. My office was ground zero. It becomes the dumping ground for everything and it greatly impacts my productivity. I have so much on my plate every single day and re-organizing is the last thing I want to be spending my time doing. Things should have their place, they should get put back in that place after being used and that is that.

I started by making a checklist of everything that I thought needed to be done at the time and started gutting various areas in my office. Everything came out of the closet. My side of the desk was completely cleared off. I cleared out my cabinet. Emptied one of the bookcases. I wasn’t messing around. It looked like a tornado but the wave of peace that washed over me when I saw those empty spaces told me I was on to something. I went through all of the items now laying on my floor and asked myself some questions:

  • When did I use it last?
  • When do I see myself using it again?
  • Am I keeping it just because?
  • Have I ever used it?
  • If I’m not sure when I might use it again, can I replace it quickly for a reasonable amount of money?
  • If I was in someone else’s house and was looking for this item, where would I think to go?

Some of these questions may sound odd, but hear me out. Let’s actually start with the last question… I found nail polish in my office. I found my daughter’s toys. I found snacks. None of these things should have been in my office. So, that led me to this question. If it didn’t belong in my office, I put it in the room that made sense. I didn’t worry about cleaning that room though. One step at a time. No multi-tasking. That’s how I’ve ended up discouraged in the past. I tear apart five rooms and then I’m too exhausted to actually put them back together.

Ok, back on track. The rest of the questions really help me understand whether I keep the item or get rid of it. If I can replace it quickly and for a reasonable sum and I don’t know if I’ll ever need it again, it’s gone. If I haven’t used it in years, gone. You get the point. I rebuilt the areas of my office that I had torn apart and even though I still have the urge to get going, I feel so much more free. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted. If you don’t believe it when people say physical clutter = mental clutter, you need to go through this exercise.

I created a checklist to finish my office and then made a list of all of the rooms in my house and prioritized them. At the moment, I know which room I’ll be minimalizing next and so on. I may not be as much of a minimalist as I’d ultimately like to be, but judging by how much stuff left my house in a garbage bag today, I’d say I’m on the right track.

I really encourage you to watch The Minimalists documentary on Netflix and listen to their podcast. Even though I was so inspired and aligned with the message, I wasn’t sure how ready I really was to take the leap. I kept listening to the podcasts and reading blog posts and the mindset finally started to sink in. If you’re interested in the movement, I highly suggest starting by educating yourself. Don’t just go throwing away all of your stuff. 🙂 Baby steps!

Have a lovely day friends!
XO Elizabeth