How To Meditate During The Age of Information
Tired of hearing you need meditation?
Today our social media accounts have trained our brains to move from one image to another in less than 15 seconds. We have less than 15 seconds to make a lasting impression or provide enough stimulation to keep your attention and onboard you! In digital marketing, it’s dubbed “the 15 second rule” to catch your target audience’s attention, sell them, and get them to commit to giving you another 60 seconds in less time than it takes you to take one deep breath.
This rule does not seem to be isolated to social media; if you are like me and running a business, you’ll find keeping your employees on task for more than 15 seconds is just as difficult. These days, even keeping a yoga student silent in class for more than 15 seconds seems an achievement. Since quarantine, it is estimated that 45-65% of adults have increased their social media usage on all platforms. We are more connected digitally than ever before. Work and school have moved online, fitness online, virtual runs/walks, and we have watches that track our every move and alert us to incoming calls, texts, our favorite vloggers latest upload, etc.
These days I am surprised by the amount of time I spend on social media mindlessly. As a self-proclaimed social media recluse even, I have found myself spending 45% more time on my screen. I spend up to 4.75 hours on my screen per day, according to my iPhone. Yes, I have started a YouTube channel and yes I am managing my business’ Instagram page and yes, I am now managing all calls and emails myself after having to let my assistant go, but still, I find this shocking. However, without social media my business would be impossible right now.
The information age is truly a magnificent one that we take full advantage of every day. Never the less, it’s ultra-stimulating and our brains as human beings have only so much energy and capability to process this plethora of information before becoming stressed. Even technology requires a little reboot and downtime.
The other day while hanging out on my phone increasing my screen time, I discovered a competition called the 100m scroll. Can you believe it? How fast can you scroll 100m? Of course, I did it and shared it with my close friends, because after all who would not want to know how fast they scroll in today’s social media crazy society. Well on my phone I was not extremely fast, in fact I got a forearm cramp because it took me 1:53:84; almost 2 minutes. I can run 100m faster than this in high heels! What surprised me was how fast I got bored with the game and how long 2 minutes felt.
Even I, a long-time meditation practitioner and teacher found myself ready to move on. I began paying attention to how long I looked at a website, held an image on Instgram, and spent reading a text. One breath was my marker of measure, and noticed that I move on to the next image in less than a breath. I skimmed websites, articles, and blogs, often bouncing on to a new one in two breaths. I emoji-ed up most texts rather than responding by typing something validating or I talked to text because typing felt like a chore. My behavior has changed as my screen time has increased. I now find myself in the “15 second rule” category. And to be honest, since quarantine, I have only meditated a few days a week and for no more than 5 minutes each time because I find myself restless, preoccupied, and undisciplined.
Perhaps I am writing this blog more for myself than you. But again, what I am experiencing I know many others are as well for we share many of the same experiences as human beings. I know from experience and I know from research and theory that meditation makes a significant difference in our mental capacity for patience, our cognitive function, our physical well-being, and our spiritual evolution. I have practiced faithfully in the past; I have lived the experience and I have reaped the rewards and yes, I have forgotten. Although because of my experience with this treasure of knowledge I know I can return with time and practice again. Enlightenment is the promise of meditation and the ultimate path to realization in yoga. It is not simple to achieve but it is simple to begin. Like all things in the Yoga tradition, 99% of the teaching is in practice and only 1% in theory. Patanjali Jois shared this teaching with his students and we in turn share it with ours. All learnings are simply a matter of practice.
A simple way to begin a sit meditation is by:
- Finding a comfortable seated position (if you lie down, extend one arm toward the ceiling so if you fall asleep your arm will fall and wake you). You do not have to sit a certain way, but you need to make sure you are comfortable for the allotted time you have chosen.
- Connect to your breath by saying to yourself “I am breathing in and now, I am breathing out.” Focused breathing helps center the mind and cultivate relaxation.
- Sit and observe your breath as it flows in and out of your lungs. Become your own audience. What do you observe or feel within your body? What sensations are you aware of? Where do you notice the breath expanding the body and contracting the body?
- Try to stay focused on the breath. If your mind wanders simply call it back to “I am breathing in and now, I am breathing out.’
- Lastly, when you have completed your meditation, offer yourself gratitude for taking time just for you.
When you take time to meditate, you will find that you are clearer, calmer, and more present. You will discover that the thoughts and actions you take in your life will come from a more focused confident place. Being over stimulated and listening to others means we are not taking time to listen to ourselves. Day after day of continued overload means we are making decisions with unfiltered information and no one—not even a machine—can take in unfiltered information and produce a successful outcome. Meditation is like the information filter and provides us a clear pathway of our own truth and heart-felt desires.