With the hectic pace and demands of modern life, meditation is becoming more and more important. For a long time, I perpetually felt overstressed and overworked. That stress and exhaustion made me unhappy, frustrated, and often unable to handle small stresses throughout my day. Instead of being able to brush off something small that bothered me, I would often get very emotional and shed tears.

Worse yet, that stress and exhaustion can negatively affect your health. Incredibly, many of us are often so busy that we feel that there is no time to stop and reflect on our situation and figure out how to make it better! Talk about failing to sharpen the saw!

About a year ago, I read a few books on meditation and took them to heart. I started stopping and taking a few minutes every day to meditate and relax my mind. Part of the reason I felt the need to do this was the insomnia that I had been battling for sometime.

I started with a simple 10 or 15 minute breathing meditation. I would often find an opportunity to do it at work. For example, during my lunch break, I would leave my office building and find a quiet spot somewhere in a park, either on the grass, or on a bench. I would close my eyes, focus on my breathing, and try to let my troubles fade away.

As I did this more and more, I found that I would feel more energized, more alert, and less prone to be upset by things. I started meditating before bed each night as well, and more times during the day. If I felt myself going through a painful episode at work, I would often take a few minutes for a meditation break. All of this did wonders for my stress and tension levels.

Since then, I’ve taken my meditation up another level. I find that playing relaxing music in the background helps facilitate my ability to enter a meditative state. To help promote that, I recently purchased this lovely Tibetan singing bowl. Singing bowls produce beautiful music which invokes deep meditative and peaceful states. The store I bought from from also has a great FAQ section with plenty of information about Tibetan bowls.

Do you meditate, and, if so, what is your meditation practice like? Let me know in the comments below!