The Importance of Having a Teacher
This is part three of a five part series, detailing the most important tricks I’ve found to meditation. In the last post we covered Social Support, and how to establish a regular routine.
When you begin meditating, it’s important to get effective instructions from a qualified coach, or use a reliable resource like Brightmind. After a while, you may feel like you’ve got the hang of what you’re doing, and no longer need guided meditations. Even if this is the case, it’s very likely you will always benefit from checking in with a teacher on some sort of regular interval. As we continue practicing meditation our experience will change, and having someone we trust to field questions about whatever is coming up is extremely valuable. We’ve done our best to create a high quality FAQ in the app, but it’s impossible to anticipate every nuanced and ultra-specific question.
There have been times in my practice where I feel quite adamant that I have no questions, and I generally know what needs to be done. Even in these instances I am always surprised by how much I benefit from checking in with a teacher about what has been happening for me. Just reporting what my meditations have been like can often lead to a significant insight being pointed out to me.
We are social creatures at the end of the day. No matter how good your meditation book or app might be, it’s always good to connect with someone who is experienced in the subject you’re trying to learn. You’ll feel more energized and inspired through these interactions, and it will increase your chances of staying on track with your practice. If you need any help finding a teacher to meet in person or through video chat, shoot me an email and I’ll be happy to connect you with someone from our network.
-Christian