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Better Than Meditation

“Free writing” gives me a way to handle the slippery thoughts that derail me from the benefits of meditation

Buster Benson
750 Words

Even dogs can meditate, why can’t you?

Meditation is awesome.

It’s pretty much the simplest, cheapest way to improve your life that has ever been invented.

The only problem with meditation is that it’s just too simple. I can’t get a hold of it for very long — it resists habitification. Maybe you know what I’m talking about?

My meditation habit from last year.

I’ve tried. On Coach.me I’ve had a few stretches of 4+ straight months where I meditated pretty much every day.

I’ve used Headspace. I’ve used Brain Beats. I’ve used Equanimity. I’ve used nothing. I’ve used NSR. I’ve read The Power of Now, Waking Up, Creativity Inc, Wherever You Go There You Are, Search Inside Yourself. I’ve done a 10 day silent meditation retreat. I’ve meditated on BART, on walks, on a cushion in a private room, at my desk. I get meditation, with its paradoxical mission of focusing so intently on not focusing on anything at all. I’ve done “it”.

And yet.

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Responses (111)

What are your thoughts?

When I read Buster’s post, I thought: Sounds cool, but no way it’s better than meditation. So I didn’t really consider it.
And then I realized: Wait, he’s not saying you have to do it instead.
And…

Yikes. Freewriting is awesome, but I think the meditation stuff in this piece is misleading.
I had a similar struggle and story about meditation for years, until I one day described it to a colleague with a regular practice and years of experience.
“I…

Everyone has an opinion about your piece, including me. We all know we are different and will take away from an article exactly from who and what we are now in our journey. As for me…I loved every word of it.
Meditation helped me in many ways but I…