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As we hit the pavement entering into a brand new year, and for many of us audition season, I have decided to take on the 30 day January Challenge with the Unplug Meditation App as a way to goal set and get clear on my intentions.
Just a little over a year ago I started to incorporate meditation into my general health & wellness routine, and it has allowed me to ‘goal set’ in a brand new way.
My first meditation EVER was a 26 minute chant that allowed me to access and stay in a heightened state of consciousness long enough to experience something that moved me to tears. Sounds crazy, but I was able to form actual visions of my life and in the state of heightened consciousness, I untapped a grounding energy that I never knew I was capable of experiencing.
It was A LOT to take in for my first time, but it was AWE-some.
That grounding energy is referred to as stillness, and up until that point of my life I had never given myself the gift that is stillness.
I felt like I had accessed some internal power becoming an actual super hero of my mind!
And in the beginning it would sometimes be so intense for me that I was unable to shake it off hours later, going into the world in a haze because I was literally blowing my own mind.
So yes, I was hooked!
I started reading more books, downloading more apps, unlocking podcasts for the first time….anything to continue to learn about and connect to the feeling of euphoria again and again!
And it is work to get there each time, and everyday is different.
Some weeks I’m so stressed and hyper active I don’t even THINK to be mindful.
But no matter what stage of my life I have been in since I have started, once I remember to go within, that stillness in the present moment is still there.
It’s always there.
So as we goal set for 2019, we start to take on new risks, set brand new intentions and in the beginning we feel great!
But new intentions usually mean new anxieties and stress.
So how do we chill out when our new goals start to freak us out or something throws off those good vibes?!
That’s where meditation comes in.
I believe meditation is the answer because it is a beautiful skill that allows us to connect to our answers that are already inside of us.
(And for artists who are auditioning and creating right now in the stressful time of audition season, I believe this meditation will help us so much to stay present through the nerves and the many ups and downs that is auditioning. Staying present in the room as well as our performances.)
So here I am, sharing my goal setting meditation (that is generally the best to do in the morning before you start your day) to kick start this new year with you!
Lets start by asking ourselves:
Where is my attention?
What is my intention?
Here is the difference:
Intention is your goal setting. It is when you get clear on your targets and allow yourself to look deep into the future of where you are going.
And in order to arrive at said intention
Attention must be in the present moment, which is how we are able to let go of outcomes, finding stillness and the space to execute brilliantly.
So the three steps in this meditation are:
Plant Intention
Let go of outcomes by connecting to stillness
Execute by bringing your full attention into the present moment
This is how the intention meditation works…
(You can do this for about 5-10 mins, whatever you are comfortable with)
When you are meditating for intention, you must first get clear on what you want to feel and see.
Sit comfortably, get quiet, close your eyes, and see your intention going deep into the future with your minds eye.
Sit with it, allow the intention to become planted inside your heart.
Then inhale that planted intention and exhale it out in order to let it go allowing the Universe to take care of it for you.
Now, sit in stillness and silence focusing on your breath.
It is important to stay with and watch your breath as it comes in and out.
Become an observer of your thoughts as they appear, and when you stear away from the present moment, take notice and bring your attention back to the breath, to the stillness.
Once your 5 or 10 minutes it up, grab a pen and paper and write down three things you are grateful for and then any notes on your experience.
Each time you do this you get to know your your presence and stillness more and more.
That's why it is called a practice, you will find that stillness is always there for you at any given moment.
Connect to stillness in order to disconnect from those fearful thoughts and voices and realize that it is not our voice.
Once you become an observer of your thoughts, you begin to realize that they are not you.
This is the work and I plan on taking it into not only audition season, but the rest of my life.
I’ll leave you with a quote from 'The Power of Now' by Eckhart Tolle
“When you act out of the present-moment awareness, whatever you do becomes imbued with a sense of quality, care and love – even the most simple action. So do not be concerned with the fruit of your action – just give attention to the action itself . The fruit will come of its own accord.”
<3
Happy 2019 :)
You’re going to crush it!
Xx
Jackie