Insight Timer

When I was working towards my Graduate Certificate in Executive Coaching, I was fortunate to be on one of the best teams of my working life. To this day, I think of that team fondly and of our time together as incredibly special. On my team was a woman who was working towards a meditation certification and she facilitated mindfulness breaks for our team.

I had tried meditation a few times before, but never was able to sit for more than a minute or so without fidgeting and getting caught up in my own thoughts.

In the guided meditation sessions with my team mate, I was able to tap into a sense of calm that was desperately needed during our intense and stressful academic pursuits.

In the many years since then, I've attempted to mediate, but could never actually get there. My monkey mind jumps around too much and I have a lot of to dos that creep in and steal my peace.

I kept trying though because there were so many studies being done on mindfulness and the many benefits of meditation. It seemed as though meditation was this elusive thing that I could never attain, let alone master on my own, but I kept seeking it.

My team mate recommended Insight Timer, a free guided meditation app. There are many mindfulness apps available with big campaigns from Calm and Headspace, but those are tiered pricing models that I just am not willing to participate in. What I like about Insight Timer is the fact that it is free! And if you want to support one of the content creators, one can donate to them directly. Most recently Insight Timer has added meditations from influencers in the mindfulness space such as Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat, Pray, Love and Big Magic), Goldie Hawn (actress and founder of Mindup.org), and Russell Brand (comedian/actor, former drug user, public activist, meditator on youtube).

Screenshot of my Insight Timer app this morning

With my efforts started in the Fall to get healthy, I decided to give Insight Timer a try again. I could only do about 5 minutes, but I found some guided meditations that worked for me. They spoke to me in some way that I was able to sit for longer. I tried to do it for 5 minutes every other day and see how I felt. It became a part of my morning routine where I would workout, then stretch, then meditate. It became something I needed to get my mind in the right space for the day ahead. I sought out other slightly longer meditations and found I was able to tap into that calm I had been chasing for so long. I have even used a few super short guided meditations during the day on highly stressful workdays.

I noticed this morning that I have consistently meditated for 73 days in a row for 10 mins each day. I thought this was noteworthy considering again my monkey brain. I can't imagine starting a day now without meditating.

It's not that I'm on some higher plain of consciousness during my meditations. It's quiet time to focus on my breathing, to quiet my mind, to center. Some mornings are a little tougher than others to get to that stillness, but I seem to get there consistently now. It's interesting to have found this place of insight where my mind is forced into silence. It's incredibly powerful from a mindset perspective and I’m grateful to have found it.