Meditation failures, my ego, moving house and first world problems.

I moved house again today. I’m doing this intense Airbnb experiment (I can’t wait to share more on this later), which is coming to an end after six long months, and on ‘moving days’ it can get a little hectic. I usually make sure I meditate at least every other day (and a guided practice every night), to keep myself in check and, you know, sane. Imagine my surprise when I was unpacking this evening and setting up my ‘practice zone’s’ at the new place when I realise I didn’t set up a daily meditation zone at the last place, so I haven’t meditated since the 29th December AND what is more disturbing; I didn’t realise this had slipped out of my practice.

My ego did not enjoy getting real on this — I have still been relating to myself as if I was doing the work and as if I’m someone who regularly meditates — it is attached to my identity even though the practice had stopped entirely.

Why does this matter? Introspection matters. Checking yourself matters, noticing what you’re getting, matters.
It shows how easy it is to stop doing something you assume is a habit. There is nothing wrong with me. This is not a lack of skill or ambition.
It is just poor behaviour design, and I wanted to point this out!
If something matters in your life, make sure you are designing your behaviours, so it shows up day in and day out. Make sure you have a sound anchor, and you are doing your reps and your daily work.

What should I do next?
Start thinking about what Tiny Habit Recipe I’ll create for my meditation practice this week and how I’ll set up my environment to support that, and taking time to be still and listen.

“When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.”

— The Dalai Lama