5 Meditation Tips: How to Meditate and Calm Your Mind

Meditation is a practice that involves using various mindfulness techniques to create or achieve a calm mental state and physical well-being. As mindfulness expert Jon Kabat-Zinn puts it, meditation is “not a thing; it’s a way of being.” Meditation uses a blend of mental focus, awareness, pointed observation, and breathing techniques to give you a stable mindset, helping you process your emotions and thoughts to live a more fulfilling, present life.

According to scientific research, regular meditation can have a therapeutic effect on your mental health and wellness while helping with stress reduction. There are many forms of meditation—including guided meditation, Kundalini yoga, mindfulness meditation, and Zen Buddhism—all of which use their unique techniques to help meditators obtain a calm mental state.

What to think about while meditating varies from person to person; some examples include focusing on sensations in the body, forgiveness, core values, or an affirmation. However, you should not expect to think of nothingness. As Jon Kabat-Zinn explains, “Among the misconceptions about meditation is one where if you’re meditating, your mind will be blank or will be clear.”

Your mind will also likely wander as you meditate, and that’s okay. Work to get back to your focus. “Say you’re following your breath, which means you’re feeling the sensations in the body, moment by moment,” Jon adds. “All of a sudden, you notice the mind is off someplace else. It's having dinner with somebody in LA, or God knows what. It could be the past; it could be the future; it could be worry; it could be anticipation. . . . You see what's on your mind. You notice that it's drifted away from the breath. And then you note what's on your mind, and you just come back to the belly or to the, you know, nostrils or wherever the breath sensations are most vivid. And then guess what? Within a few seconds, your mind is gonna go off again. And you bring it back again. And you bring it back again. And over time, bring it back, goes off, bring it back, goes off, you bring it back.”

Effective meditation takes practice. Here are a few tips you can use to ensure you get the most out of your sessions:

1. 1. Select a quiet place. Select a distraction-free zone to put yourself in the best position to clear your mind and find your inner peace during your session. Your meditation location should be quiet and soothing, with a comfortable amount of light and temperature.
2. 2. Find a comfortable position. When selecting a sitting position for a meditation session, comfort is key. You can sit with your legs crossed on the floor or in a comfortable position on a couch or chair, with your feet flat on the ground, and a straight (but not rigid) spine. Ensure your seated position allows you to breathe comfortably to avoid distractions during your meditation.
3. 3. Set a schedule. Creating a meditation schedule can be useful if your goal is to build consistency. While you can meditate at any time of day, some people find it more beneficial to meditate early in the morning to prepare themselves to handle everyday life stresses. However, if you cannot commit to a morning routine, try to meditate at the same time every day to create consistency in your mindfulness practices.
4. 4. Avoid expectations or judgment. Enter your meditation without expectations, and try not to judge yourself too harshly if you cannot have a relaxing meditation session in your first few attempts. It may take multiple tries before you begin feeling comfortable with meditating. The practice is not a quick cure for mental distress—it requires patience, consistency, and practice, which can present challenges for beginners.
5. 5. Check in with yourself. Take note of how you feel after every meditation session—even if you think it went well—to reflect on your progress. Pay attention to how both your brain and body feel. Consider keeping a journal to log your thoughts and feelings or track your progress.

Perhaps you’re looking to experience the benefits of meditation but don’t know where to start. Follow these steps to implement a daily meditation practice:

1. 1. Choose a time and place that works with your schedule. When starting any new habit, consistency is key. Meditating at the same time and place each day will help you pick up a meditation practice easily. Pick a time that fits comfortably into your schedule and a distraction-free location. For example, you might choose to meditate first thing in the morning in the quiet of your bedroom. Learn more about how to build a habit.
2. 2. Set an amount of time to meditate each day. Beginners should start with short meditation sessions—between three to five minutes of meditation, or whatever length of time feels effective and manageable. You can work your way up to longer sessions over time.
3. 3. Make yourself comfortable. Maximize your physical comfort to help with mind-wandering. Meditation music, incense, and soft lighting can help provide a comforting and serene meditation space. A rolled-up towel or meditation cushion can help keep your back straight.
4. 4. Choose between freeform or guided meditation. Meditation apps can help provide a virtual meditation teacher, which is beneficial for beginners. Guided meditations walk you through visualizations and mindful breathing exercises. They may also provide an easy introduction to different types of meditation, such as walking meditation or transcendental meditation. Or meditate on your own, with Jon Kabat-Zinn’s meditation guide as a starting point.

Meditative practices can help improve both your mental and physical health, leading to a better quality of life. Here are some of the potential health benefits associated with meditation:

1. 1. Daily meditation can improve mental health. Meditation can help prevent the mind from wandering into negative or traumatic territory by promoting self-awareness and existence in the present moment. Mindfulness meditation techniques can help you learn to deal with the mental stressors of daily life. Meditation can also potentially reduce the stress hormone cortisol, alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders, and boost your immune system and mood.
2. 2. Loving-kindness meditation can raise self-esteem. Also known as Metta meditation, this form of meditation centers on compassion, directing the meditator to feel love and kindness toward everyone in their lives, even those they consider their enemies. The loving-kindness meditation’s goal is to cultivate positive emotions that can erase the negative thoughts and feelings that cause stress. Raising your self-worth through meditation can also increase your compassion and reduce your aggression, improving your relationships with others.
3. 3. Meditation can help with coping. Regular meditation courses can alter how you cope with stimuli, leading to healthier default choices. Meditation sessions can produce structural changes in the brain that may underpin seemingly ethereal benefits: calm, focus, and contentment. In one Harvard study, researchers found that a few weeks of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) therapy increased cortical thickness in areas of the brain responsible for memory, learning, self-referential processing, and emotional regulation, along with decreases in the cell volume of the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for anxiety, stress, and fear.
4. 4. Meditation programs can improve physical wellness. Regular meditation practice can reduce your heart rate and lower your blood pressure. According to Harvard Medical School, meditative mindfulness practices can encourage heart-healthy behaviors, reducing the risk of heart disease or other cardiac issues over time.
5. 5. Meditation sessions can improve sleep quality. Meditation can increase the production of the sleep hormone melatonin, which can alleviate insomnia symptoms and improve your quality of sleep. Poor sleep quality can lead to issues with your overall health, and meditation is just one of many ways to improve your sleep hygiene.
6. 6. Meditation training can help with pain management. Progressive or body scan meditation involves mentally combing through your body for physical sensations, drawing more attention to them, and allowing your mind to process your feelings. Giving your brain time to recognize and analyze pain can help you further understand it. Certain types of meditation, like relaxation-response, can alleviate the bloating and pain associated with digestive issues. Learn how to do a body scan meditation.

Find something comfortable to sit or lie on, grab a MasterClass Annual Membership, and dial into the present moment with Jon Kabat-Zinn, the father of the Western mindfulness movement. From formal meditation exercises to examinations of the science behind mindfulness, Jon will prepare you for the most important practice of them all: life itself.