Mindfulness Exercise

The Mindfulness Meditation Institute

Meditation Goal Statement Exercise

If you’re serious about your meditation practice, then you’ll make the commitment to practicing diligently and consistently. A goal statement is a powerful tool to help you stay on track. This exercise will make it easy for you to prepare your statement, and show you to use it for maximum effectiveness. I have included a sample format. You can either simply fill in the blanks, or use it as a model for your own statement. The two most important elements of a meditation goal statement are: 1) What you will do, and 2) How long you will do it. Here are my suggestions for a successful meditation practice:

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Practice sitting meditation regularly. I recommend a minimum of twenty minutes per day to start. I suggest increasing the duration as you become able to sit longer. Use the meditation techniques outlined on our website, or the Quick Start to Mindfulness Meditation CD.

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Practice writing meditation regularly. I would recommend at least ten minutes per day. Include your goal statement as part of the writing meditation. You can do this at any time, though you’ll probably see better results if you do it right before your sitting meditation session.

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Attend a mindfulness meditation meeting regularly. Meditating with others is essential to your spiritual development. I recommend attending at least one meeting per week, and that you get actively involved in the group.

If none of the meetings in your area focus on good mindfulness meditation techniques, then I recommend you start your own group. Our group starter kit makes this easy for you. You can download it from the Resources page of our website. I should caution you to not make your goals overly ambitious. Otherwise, you’ll never achieve them, and you’ll get discouraged and quit. Make your goals realistically achievable, taking into consideration your commitments. Remember, you can revise them at any time. Also, don’t get...