7 Tips for Success

I want you to be successful with this 21-day challenge, so I'm going to offer you seven ways to prepare. First and foremost, you need to be committed, easier said than done. So you know how there's those times where you think, oh, I really should do this, or I know I need to make this change, but there's part of you that's not fully on board, it's kind of half-hearted. That's not the full commitment. And then there's the time where you recognize the jig is up, like all arrows point to make a change, and you feel it in your body.

This is what I want from you for this 21-day commitment. I am committed. If you're on the fence about it, wait, wait until you're really clear that you're going to make this commitment, because I want you on that cushion every single day for 21 days. So get clear, make the commitment. The second thing you need to do is choose a time.

I highly recommend that you make the commitment to a specific time and try to stick with that each day. It can be really challenging if you're switching it up day to day. I would also really recommend morning, right? If you get up and start your day with your meditation, it has potential positive ripple effect through your whole day. Now I realize not everybody is an early morning person, but maybe just getting up a little bit earlier is going to be worth it for you in the end before everyone else in your house is up and at them and distractions and the busyness of the day take over.

So consider that. If that is not going to work for you, choose a time later in the day, but just make sure that it's going to be a reliable time. If you have kids, don't choose 8 or 8.30 in the morning when you know you're going to be in that crush to get everybody out the door. Choose something realistic. And maybe it's even further into your day, midday, end of the day, maybe less time on social media.

Maybe you cut out a TV show in the evening so that you know you can get your meditation in. Third thing I'm going to recommend you do is let everybody know in your house that you're making this commitment, right? So if the kids could be storming in on you or your husband or partner asking for something, if everybody knows, you know, Sarah's meditating at 10 a.m., they will respect that, right? You need to let everybody in your household know, this is when I'm going to be making my meditation plans. In addition, it would be super helpful if you got a couple other people on board with you.

Maybe someone else in your house wants to make the commitment too, and then you've got a partner in meditation, and maybe not even somebody that you live with, maybe a couple of friends, hey, let's all get together and commit. We're going to start this 21-day meditation. And just knowing you've got support, community, and you can also talk about it with them, your experiences of meditating with them, it can really keep you on track for this challenge. Fourth thing you're going to want to do ahead of time is create a space. Now, of course, not everybody has an entire room to dedicate in your home, you know, to meditation or to yoga, but setting aside a specific area of your home, really important.

So whether it's a little corner in your bedroom, maybe you have enough space where you live to actually leave your props out, excellent. If you don't, then a space where you can very easily put your props away and then bring them back out each day, right, because this is where I want you to go every single day. It's your zone to sit and meditate. Maybe it's just props if you're someone that needs a little more ritual, you know, maybe you create a little altar with beauty, flowers, symbols that are important to you. But decide where you're going to meditate and create that space.

So the fifth thing you need to do to be prepared is get your props. You're going to need a few things, maybe quite a few things, but you're going to need a few things so that you can sit comfortably. Might be just one or two items, but it might be more. So I want you to get your props ahead of time so you know you won't be struggling with how to sit. And you also will need a mala.

So many malas, many beautiful malas, you get to pick which one you want. But I want you to grab a mala because as we get through the first portion of our meditations, I'm going to introduce the use of chanting, meditating with the mala. The sixth thing I think you should have is a journal. So you may find an array of insights happening, new observations about yourself, noticing how the meditation is changing or how it's actually impacting your daily life. So it's really, really valuable if you can have a journal on hand to make notes, make notes after meditation, even make notes throughout the day if you're having new insights.

So have, you know, some kind of journal available so that you can really record and in a way track your experience. Grab a journal. The last thing I'm going to suggest you do to really set yourself on the right path for this 21 day challenge is to set up a reward for yourself. Something you're going to do to reward yourself when you have completed these 21 days of meditation. Choose something that feels like a treat, you know, and that's really positive and supportive of yourself so that you really have something to look forward to.

A way to pat yourself on the back for having accomplished something big. It's a big commitment. Getting still, getting quiet, carving out this space in your busy day is no small thing. So choose something special and treat yourself at the end. Namaste.