Some days are more successful than others, but all-in-all
I’ve become somewhat used to the idea of meditating in the mornings. The newest
addition to my practice this week has been my attempt to make use of mediation
apps, and I’d like to discuss what I’ve found while using them (i.e., what
works and what doesn’t).
For the uninitiated
I believe I’ve said in my previous posts that meditation
shares many similarities with exercising, but let me demonstrate that the
connection goes beyond the difficulties of motivation. The ubiquitous place of
small yet powerful electronics have brought about the beginning of the era of
the “quantified self,” and the data that our devices are collecting goes beyond
our running speeds. Meditation apps are wedding the usefulness of a mediation guide,
a timer, and a mediation log to track progress. My favorite app this far,
called Headspace, provides guided
mediation sessions, reminds you to take time to mediate, provides you with
goals, and rewards your success. It also teaches you the basics of mediation
and offers new advice as you go along. It’s very useful for someone who is
already glued to his or her phone, as half of the battle with mediation is
simply remembering to do it.
My two favorite apps, which I’ve mentioned, both include at
least an attempt at a social component. Headspace
allows you to invite and challenge your friends within the app. Although I think I’d have a difficult time
convincing my friends to meditate, I find the idea to be very useful. Both apps
also include “this many people are mediating around the world right now” thing,
which I think is pretty useless, but some might find it encouraging to think
that they are part of something more significant. Truthfully, neither of the
social components work for me. I imagine being in a meditation classroom, where
I’m either tasked with finding a partner to bring to class or simply shown dots
on a map illustrating people mediating. I don’t think I’d find that very
useful. I wish these apps would provide a way to make connections with these
other meditating people. Maybe a way to communicate with them would be nice.
I’ve found adding technology to this undertaking has been
really helpful. I’m still on the outlook for new applications, and I’m just
starting to dabble in online mediation forums, which is a very untapped place
of wild potential. I’ll update you on my progress there next week.
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