6 Common Myths About Meditation

For those who have meditated before, you know the unbelievable power that it can have for your body, mind, and soul. For those who haven’t, there can be a lot of confusion, misinformation, and myths about meditation.

I have been very open about the fact that meditation has positively impacted my life. I make the effort to meditate every day and have helped others learn about and begin meditating. Meditation is one of those gifts that I wish everybody could experience. The benefits of meditation are unbelievable. My goal for today is to debunk some of the myths about meditation to help gain a better understanding of what meditation really is.

Myth #1: There is a ‘right’ and a ‘wrong’ way

Let me say this right off the bat, there is absolutely no “correct way” to meditate. What works for one person may not work for another. Meditation at its core is a way to be connected with the present moment. Now, how you decide to do that is completely up to you. Whether you meditate with your eyes open or closed, in silence or with light music, sitting on the floor or laying down – that is your way to meditate and there is nothing wrong with that.

Once you understand that meditation is not a strict process that you must follow step by step, it takes a lot of pressure off you. Experiment and find out what works for YOU.

Myth #2: If your mind wanders you can’t meditate

This is one of the most popular excuses I hear for why somebody chooses not to meditate.

“I can’t concentrate.”

“My mind wanders.”

“I start thinking about a million things a minute.“

And any variation of that.

The truth is, your mind 1000% WILL wander during meditation. That is completely normal and expected. In fact, it would be truly bizarre if you are able to meditate without your mind wandering; especially in the beginning. If that happens you may want to consider uprooting your life and becoming a monk because you are probably a prodigy. A wandering mind can actually lead to many great things, including:

• Forcing you to go back to focusing on being in the present moment
• Helping you realize solutions to current problems
• Giving you reminders for important tasks
• Overall clarity about a situation

So, don’t be afraid of your mind wandering during meditation. Encourage it!

Myth #3: Meditation is for “hippies”

This one is sort of ridiculous, but I figured it is worth mentioning anyway. Hippie, nutjob, oddball – whatever term you want to use. Some people believe that it is abnormal to meditate. This is usually because they don’t understand it. Some of the most successful people have gone on record to indicate that they use meditation including:

• Joe Rogan, host of the most popular Spotify podcast
• Oprah Winfrey
• Jeff Weiner, Executive Chairman & former CEO of LinkedIn
• Arianna Huffington, Co-Founder of The Huffington Post
• Paul McCartney, The Beatles
• Bill Gates
• Phil Jackson, 13 NBA championship rings

It is clear now that meditation has so many positive impacts to your overall health that it would be foolish not to do it just because some people think it is “strange.”

Myth #4: You must focus on your breathing

I do recommend focusing on your breathing, as it is a great anchor to assist in your meditation, especially for beginners. However, it is certainly not a requirement. Remember, meditation is not strict. There is a lot of flexibility based on your own personal preferences.

You can focus on anything as you meditate. You can even meditate with your eyes open and focus on the lamp in the corner of your room.

If focusing on your breathing is not for you, try focusing on something else. Examples include:

• A nearby object
• A humming sound
• Your emotions
• Your body
• A specfic body part
• A current problem you are facing
• A constant outside noise, such as the ocean

Myth #5: It works for some people, but not for me

Your mind is constantly on, always thinking. It is the most powerful computer in the world that never shuts off. The time we take to meditate is giving our mind a break. We are allowing it to focus on just the present and just one thing – whether that be our breathing or something else.

While it is true that not everything is for everyone, I don’t think this pertains to meditation. That is like saying healthy food is not for everyone. That’s crazy. Your body will operate MUCH better on a healthy diet. Now, what that diet is might change for everybody. One person might prefer a low-carb diet while somebody else might want 50% of their macronutrients to come from carbohydrates. Both people can still eat healthy diets. It works the same for meditation. One person might prefer silent meditation while the other prefers guided meditation.

Meditation is for everyone; you just need to figure out what works for you.

Myth #6: Meditation must be in complete silence

This one is not true at all. You can meditate with calming music or you can do guided meditation listening to somebody’s soothing voice (this is especially helpful for novice meditators).

If being in silence makes you feel uncomfortable, unable to focus, or like you aren’t experienced enough to know what you are doing, take comfort in knowing there are alternative options.

Furthermore, if you hear a large noise or disturbance, it does not mean your meditation was unsuccessful. If somebody knocks on your door, your phone rings, your dog barks, you hear traffic from outside – that’s totally fine. Just acknowledge these sounds happened and move past them. Taking a moment to be in the present and acknowledge outside noise occurred will help you to not get angry or upset by it and will allow you to continue your meditation in peace.

Conclusion

Meditation is an extremely powerful tool that anybody can take advantage of with just 5 minutes of practice a day. There are extraordinary benefits and it is simple to do, despite what many of the myths and misinformation out there may want you to believe.

If you haven’t before, try doing meditation with an open mind.

If you have done it before but found it difficult, try again now charged with the knowledge that many of the preconceived notions about meditation are false.

And if you are already meditating regularly, keep up the amazing work!

Best,

Eric