Meditation for focus & happiness

Author: Ian Mikutel, March Rogers, Darren Austin
Published: Mon 30 Oct 2017
Episode Link: https://www.bettershow.io/

In this episode Ian, Darren & March talk about meditation. We reflect on how meditation can help deal with all sorts of life challenges, our own personal experiences with meditation, tips & tricks you can use, and experiments we're going to try and report back on.

Show Notes

1:02— What meditation is and how it begets mindfulness

2:21 —The science behind meditation and how it can positively affect your mind and body

6:13— Darren’s journey — you too might be mediating already and not know it

13:58 —Why not all attempts at meditation might stick

16:11 —Ways meditation can help make your life more balanced like it did for Ian

19:27 —Finding yourself not able to be “in the now” or having trouble letting go? March recommends meditation
- “Letting go of extrinsic motivators, and embracing intrinsic ones”

24:35 —It’s not called a meditation practice for nothing

26:25 —Shamanic drumming, binaural beats, and brain entrainment: how rhythm and other external factors can elevate your consciousness

33:05 — “Meditation is the exercise to get strong mental muscles and mindfulness is the use of those muscles to help me” — March

33:30 —Methods to practice focusing your attention, as tested by March

36:03 —PSA: meditation is not a religious activity

37:39 —App suggestions to help you get started on your meditation practice

44:19 —What three personal meditation routines actually look and feel like

1:05:20 —Transcendental meditation can teach you how to access your inner calm

1:13:34 —Our next experiments:
- Ian will continue his mindfulness meditation streak, try TM, start a daily gratitude journal
- Darren will read Man’s Search for Meaning and meditate outside in unpleasant weather
- March will continue daily meditation, experimenting with mantra-based meditation, and start a gratitude journal