Brain too busy to meditate? That’s actually a potential advantage when it comes to rewiring your brain, developing better attention, decreasing stress, and improving your relationships — because the moment you realize you’ve been distracted is the magic moment.
From one of my favorite meditation teachers, Sharon Salzburg. Sharon posted this on her Facebook page, and I thought I’d share it here as well.
“Though a convention, a new year can mark new beginnings, bringing thoughts of forgiveness and starting over. This is about meditation (and life) from Real Happiness: The moment you realize you’ve been distracted is the magic moment. It’s a chance to be really different, to try a new response—don’t tell yourself you’re …weak or undisciplined, or give up in frustration, but simply let go and begin again.”
I’ll add that the “magic moment” to which Sharon refers is, in my opinion (based on current neuroscientific research), the moment in which you’re rewiring your brain. Every time your mind wanders, it’s an opportunity, not a failure — another chance to notice, and bring your awareness back to the moment, with kindness to yourself, again and again — kind of like doing reps when you’re lifting weights.
Any repeated experience — in this case, noticing your distraction and then bringing yourself back — is what builds more and stronger pathways in the brain.