What to Focus on During Meditation: 20 Ideas

Meditation is a powerful tool that can help you increase mindfulness and reduce stress. Meditating involves sitting in silence and focusing on your breath, a sound, a mantra, or an object while trying to clear your mind of distractions. However, knowing what to focus on during your practice can take time if you are new to meditation. In this blog post, we will explore 20 ideas that can help you focus your mind during meditation to experience the full benefits of this practice.

Your breath.

Focusing on your breath is a classic meditation technique. Focus on the sensation of your breath moving in and out of your body.

Your body sensations.

Concentrate on your feelings in your body, such as your feet on the floor or your hands on your lap.

A mantra.

A mantra is a sound, word, or phrase you repeat to yourself during meditation. It can help you focus your mind and clear any mental chatter.

A candle flame.

Candle meditation involves staring at a candle flame and focusing your attention on the flame's movement.

A body scan.

A body scan involves focusing on different body parts, one at a time, and being aware of any sensations or discomfort.

A visualization.

Visualizing a specific scene or place can help you feel more relaxed and focused during meditation.

The sounds around you.

Rather than trying to block out the sounds around you, focus your attention on them and try to observe them without judgment.

A repeated sound.

Like a mantra, a repeated sound can help focus your mind and remove distractions.

Gratitude.

Meditating on what you are grateful for can help to reduce stress and increase positive emotions.

Your surroundings.

Pay attention to your surroundings' colors, smells, and textures during your meditation practice.

Forgiveness.

Meditating on forgiveness can help you let go of anger or resentment towards yourself or others.

A loved one.

Focusing your attention on a loved one, physically present or not, can evoke love and connection.

Your heartbeat.

Listen to your heartbeat while meditating to help focus your thoughts.

An object.

Pick an object, like a rock or a flower, and focus on it during meditation.

Silence.

Embrace the silence during your meditation practice, without any specific focus, to help clear your mind.

Your goals.

Meditating on your goals can help you gain clarity and motivation.

Nature.

To promote mindfulness, focus on natural elements like the sky, trees, or water.

Positive affirmations.

During your meditation practice, repeat positive affirmations to yourself to help boost self-esteem and confidence.

Your chakras.

Focusing on your chakras can help to balance your inner energy and promote overall well-being.

Breathing exercises.

Incorporating different breathing exercises into your meditation practice, like box breathing or Nadi Shodhana, can help you relax and calm your mind.

Meditation has incredible benefits for your physical, emotional, and mental well-being. By focusing your mind during your meditation practice, you can deepen your mindfulness and amplify the positive effects of this practice. Please choose one of the 20 ideas mentioned above to discover a focus that resonates with you and incorporate it into your meditation routine. Remember, there is no right or wrong way to meditate, so enjoy the process and find what works best for you. 

To learn how to meditate, read this article: How to Mediate

If you are a beginner and want guided meditation, try Insight Timer. This is by far my favorite one!*

Enhance your overall well-being through the power of meditation! Reach out to one of our therapists at VitalMind Online Counseling today! Katelyn Kosinski is a mindfulness educator as well as a mental health therapist.

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