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This thread is going to be centered around the book by Google-engineer-turned-personal-growth-coach called Search Inside Yourself (Get it? Google; Search?).
Through the spirit of sharing here at Big Mike's I found myself watching the YouTube video of Meng, the Google engineer (about 1 hour – he's a little difficult to understand at times but gets the point across) discussing his book and "Mindfulness Meditation."
Before I had even finished the video, I had searched my local library, found that they had the book, and immediately went to get it.
By page 35 I was sold on this book. I've read tons of positive-thinking and meditation books, so I'm not easily “sold” on this kind of book. I'm also not finished with it yet, so I still reserve the right to make a final determination.
But I was sold because of a couple of paragraphs on pages 34 and 35 describing one of the main “issues” I have with my meditation or focusing exercises, and that is the question, “Why are my thoughts all over the place? Am I doing it wrong?” And for most of us I think that quickly leads to frustration and then eventually quitting. It says:
The fact that he is able to discuss and explain a topic like meditation from the perspective of an engineer (rather than a guru who speaks in enigmatic ways that I don't really get) is a breath of fresh air for me and makes the subject infinitely more applicable, which is what I'm after.
So I'm going to run an experiment here. I want to see if this book will give me the clarity and framework I need in order to meditate (and operate) in a way that has a positive effect on my work and life. I'll try to share the journey here and report the results.
I hope you enjoy it and find it helpful.
"Is it hard? Not if you have the right attitude. It's having the right attitude that's hard." - Robert Pirsig
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That sounds like a good book to start with. Don't try to force anything, relax and focus your attention on your breathing. If you mind wanders, simply notice that it is wandering and gently guide it back to your breathing. The idea is to become aware of what is occurring, and the wandering definitely occurs.
I think you may find it helpful if you drop the counting and instead focus on the physical motion of breathing, either the air through the nostrils, or the diaphragm rising and falling (my basic technique). Try to note when the inhalations and exhalations begin and end....
I'm not going to be disclosing everything in Search Inside Yourself (SIY) for obvious reasons, but so that anyone reading this can be on the same page with me, I'm going to describe the Mindfulness Meditation practice itself.
From pages 26 and 27 of SIY:
I'm not going to log here every time I meditate, but I'll be doing the two minutes, probably several times during the day, to get started.
"Is it hard? Not if you have the right attitude. It's having the right attitude that's hard." - Robert Pirsig
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I'm glad to found your way to this book. I did the same thing after reading that link a few weeks ago. I'm currently 1/2 way through the kindle edition and funnily enough the hard copy turned up from Amazon this morning just as I was reading your post.
I ordered the hard copy as I want to pass this book around to some family members as I think it is potentially life changing for some.
I've been floating around the idea of using mindfulness not just for trading but for improving all parts of my life for some time now but am yet to actually put in the effort to implement these ideas consistently - (bit like my trading).
About a year back I got hold of these mindfulness mp3's from Dr Gary and found them to be useful however never followed them through. They require a lot more effort than the easy and easier methods taught in search inside yourself.
While it applies greatly to trading I see huge potential for improving all aspects of life using mindfulness tools.
Eg. I am a terrible listener and SIY has some great tools for practicing how to really focus on listening to what people are saying.
I've also applied it to driving. I have a 1/2hr peak hr drive through heavy traffic to work each day. Previously I use to have the radio or some tunes up loud, I'd drive in the fast line at or just above the speed limit and I'd get really p1ssed if someone cut me off, etc. Now, I turn the radio off, sit in the slow lane and focus on actually driving. If other thoughts other than what is happening right now in the present moment occur I become aware of them and then let them go and get back to focus. If someone cuts me off I don't care - I hope they enjoy their day.
Food is better now too - I enjoy and savour every bite.
Anyway, the list goes on. Great to see this discussed here.
@fibfisherman, thanks for the extra links and info.
I can definitely relate to the listening thing and especially the driving thing.
I have improved the driving aspect enormously over the past couple of years though. I'm very much into the Abraham-Hicks stuff and the idea that your thoughts are literally attracting more of what you're thinking about, so I've already done a lot of work on "changing how I think."
That's why I'm so interested in this Mindfulness stuff. It's incredibly important to me to be able to learn to "manage my attention" better.
I'm already starting to do the Mindful Activity stuff during the day (Chapter 3, Mindfulness in Activity) - I'll talk about that soon.
Thanks again.
"Is it hard? Not if you have the right attitude. It's having the right attitude that's hard." - Robert Pirsig
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I'm doing my Mindfulness Meditation for 4 minutes now. 2 minutes felt too short. I felt like it was over before I could even get started.
I did it four times throughout the day today. Mostly chatter still.
I'm consuming Search Inside Yourself when I have the time and attentiveness - about 2/3 through. I plan to read straight through it this first time and then start over again to study it more deliberately.
"Is it hard? Not if you have the right attitude. It's having the right attitude that's hard." - Robert Pirsig
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Finished SIY today. Starting at the beginning again.
Thanks to the book I've developed a way of doing my Mindfulness Meditation that has significantly improved the amount of time I'm able to be "in it" as opposed to having my thoughts flying all over the place.
I'll try to talk about it some in the next day or two.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
"Is it hard? Not if you have the right attitude. It's having the right attitude that's hard." - Robert Pirsig
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"Is it hard? Not if you have the right attitude. It's having the right attitude that's hard." - Robert Pirsig
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Just wanted to say thanks for brining this book to my attention. I purchased it and almost done and found it a new look on an old subject of mindfulness.