12 Minute Meditation

Our guest this week is Janice Martellucci, Executive Director of Peace in Schools. As millions of students get ready to head back to school in the Northern Hemisphere, she brings us a meditation to meet transitions and new places with courage and curiosity. 
Regardless of the type of transition you might be facing, this meditation is designed to help you: 
Notice the emotions that arise as you approach this change

Stay present to what you're experiencing with care, especially if you're feeling fear or resistance

Offer support to yourself and others 

Janice Martellucci is the Executive Director of Peace in Schools and an educator focused on uplifting the agency and wellbeing of young people. Since 2015, she's been an influencer and change-maker in mindfulness education, playing an integral role in designing and implementing the nation's first, for-credit, semester-long mindfulness course in public high schools. Her work brings transformative mindfulness education to thousands of teens and educators every year.
The transcription of this guided meditation will be online and in our app at Mindful.org next week. 
Stay curious, stay inspired. Sign up for our free newsletter mindful.org/signup or download the app for free at mindful.org/app. 
Show Notes
Find more from Janice Martellucci here.
Go Deeper
Change is inevitable, but being with change, without trying to grasp or control the outcome, can be a huge challenge. Mindfulness can help. To learn more, check out these resources from Mindful.org: 
Back-to-School Mindfulness Toolkit for Parents, Kids, and Educators 

Finding Your Way Forward When the Path Is Not Clear 

New Life, Who's This? Rediscovering Who You Are When Everything Has Changed 

Embracing Change: What Nanalan' Teaches Us About Saying Goodbye 

Navigating Menopause: A Mindful Approach to Managing Symptoms and Embracing Change 

The Only Constant Is Change 

For another approach to working with transition, try: A Meditation to Help You Let Go and Accept Change 
And more from Mindful here:
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Let us know what you thought of this episode of 12 Minute Meditation by leaving a review or by emailing yourwords@mindful.org.

Our guest this week is Jeneé Johnson. She brings us a meditation based on what she calls "staying on the spot." This meditation is designed to help you: 
Notice when your thoughts wander

Come back to the moment without judgment or anxiety

Practice training your attention in meditation so you can carry that skill over into daily life

Jenée Johnson is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach, Racial Healing, Emotional Intelligence Educator, and HeartMath facilitator. Jenée initiated and led the unique effort to bring mindfulness into San Francisco's public health programs and practices through the Trauma Informed Systems Initiative. She is on the advisory board of Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute (SIYLI) and is certified to teach mindfulness and emotional intelligence based on the latest neuroscience. She is also the founder and curator of The Right Within Experience, a day-long program for people of African ancestry that teaches practical mindfulness to overcome the diminishing impact of racism and open a portal to a liberatory lifestyle.
The transcription of this guided meditation will be online and in our app at Mindful.org next week. 
Stay curious, stay inspired. Sign up for our free newsletter mindful.org/signup or download the app for free at mindful.org/app. 
Show Notes
Find more from Jeneé Johnson here.
Go Deeper
For more information on how mindfulness practice can help you train your focus and attention, check out these resources from Mindful.org:
Attention! How Mindfulness Training Is Helping People Reclaim Their Ability to Focus 

Paying Attention to the Space In Between 

Finding a Way to Measure and Study Our Internal Attention 

The Brain Science of Attention with Amishi Jha 

Find Your Focus: Own Your Attention in 12 Minutes a Day 

For another approach to attention-strengthening meditation, try: A Breathing Meditation to Gently Bring Your Attention Back with Awareness 
And more from Mindful here:
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Let us know what you thought of this episode of 12 Minute Meditation by leaving a review or by emailing yourwords@mindful.org.

It is natural as finite human beings to want to feel certain. To our brains, certainty equals safety. It's normal to wish we could control the future, because uncertainty can be unsettling and scary. 
But as today's teacher observes, as difficult as it is, the only real leverage we have to positively influence the future is to learn to inhabit the present moment fully, without trying to fix it or manage it. This is the most challenging aspect of mindfulness, and its core principle. 
This 20-minute guided meditation with Jon Kabat-Zinn is practice for simply being awake and aware in the moment without agenda. 
Jon Kabat-Zinn is the founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) as well as the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. He is author of Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness; Wherever You Go, There You Are; Coming to Our Senses; and Mindfulness for Beginners. He trains, teaches, and lectures throughout the world on applications of mindfulness and is Professor of Medicine Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

The transcription of this guided meditation will be online and in our app at Mindful.org next week. 
Stay curious, stay inspired. Sign up for our free newsletter mindful.org/signup or download the app for free at mindful.org/app. 
Show Notes
Find more from Jon Kabat Zinn here.
Go Deeper
Like any mindful skill, learning how to tune into and stay rooted in the present moment takes time and practice. Learn more with these resources on Mindful:
How Present-Moment Awareness Can Make Life More Meaningful 

The Science and Practice of Staying Present Through Difficult Times 

Why It's Hard to Live in the Present Moment 

Before Fidget Toys, There Were Beads: The Latest Craze is Part of a Long Tradition of Keeping Your Hands Busy 

Being Present with Cancer 

For another approach to practicing present moment awareness, try: A 10-Minute Practice to Fully Experience the Present 
And more from Mindful here:
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Let us know what you thought of this episode of 12 Minute Meditation by leaving a review or by emailing yourwords@mindful.org.

Stress and tension can easily build up in our bodies during busy days or weeks, and often we don't even realize how much that is affecting our ability to let go and fall asleep at night. 
In this guided practice, teacher Kelly Boys offers a simple body scan meditation that uses sensory awareness and intentional breathing to invite a sense of lovely heaviness and relaxation.
Kelly Boys is a mindfulness trainer, coach, author, and speaker, specializing in teaching the NSDR (non sleep deep rest) practice of yoga nidra. She is the author of The Blind Spot Effect and as a trainer has created mindfulness programs for UN humanitarians and veterans with PTSD. 
Just a quick note: Since this is a sleep meditation, you won't be hearing a closing bell or the usual outro, so that you can drift off in silence. 
The transcription of this guided meditation will be online and in our app at Mindful.org next week. 
Stay curious, stay inspired. Sign up for our free newsletter mindful.org/signup or download the app for free at mindful.org/app. 
Show Notes
Find more from Kelly Boys here.
Go Deeper
It's not really possible to "get rid" of stress. In fact, the more we try to fight it, the worse it gets. What does work to ease stress is to meet it with compassion, and that can take on various forms: sensory awareness, body scans, deep breathing, mindful movement, journaling, and many other types of mindfulness practice. Here are just a few ways that you can learn to meet, process, and release stress: 
Make It Personal: How Mindfulness Can Support Highly Stressed People 

A Steady Heart: A Cardiologist's Advice for Lowering Stress 

A Simple Inquiry Practice to Unwind from Stress 

Mindfulness May be a Useful Tool for Dealing with Stress Associated with Autism

The Power of Meeting Stress with Softness

For another guided meditation to help you get to sleep, try: Healthy Sleep Can't Be Forced. Try this Sleep Meditation Instead 
And more from Mindful here:
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Let us know what you thought of this episode of 12 Minute Meditation by leaving a review or by emailing yourwords@mindful.org.

When we're facing disappointment or challenge, it's easy to default to negative narratives about who we are inherently: I'm a failure. What's wrong with me? I never do anything right. 
This week, teacher Rich Fernandez invites a different perspective: When we shift from naming an existential trait (like, I must be a loser) to naming a temporary experiential state (like, I'm experiencing a setback that's discouraging), then we can actually return awareness and agency to ourselves and navigate a way through the challenge. 
Rich Fernandez has dedicated his career to building more purposeful, mindful, and high-performing workplaces. He is the former CEO of Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute (SIYLI), co-founded Wisdom Labs, and has also served in senior roles at eBay, J.P. Morgan Chase, and Bank of America. Currently, he is the Head of Executive Development at Gap, Inc.
The transcription of this guided meditation will be online and in our app at Mindful.org next week. 
Stay curious, stay inspired. Sign up for our free newsletter mindful.org/signup or download the app for free at mindful.org/app. 
Show Notes
Find more from Rich Fernandez here.
 
Go Deeper
Learning how to navigate difficulty is a core human skill, and naturally one of the most challenging. For more resources on how mindfulness can help build resilience, compassion, and wisdom for the tougher seasons of life, check out these articles from Mindful: 
Why Imagination—Not Resilience—Might Help You Heal From Heartbreak 

Elaine Smookler on How Setbacks Can Breed Resilience 

Deep Resilience: The Wisdom of Making Friends with Your Mind 

Swimming, Walking, Running—Why Mindful Movement Can Boost Resilience  

Learning to Meditate Through Difficulty 

For another guided practice on staying steady when things feel like they're falling apart, try: Staying Grounded through Difficulty 
And more from Mindful here:
More episodes of 12 Minute Meditation
Let us know what you thought of this episode of 12 Minute Meditation by leaving a review or by emailing yourwords@mindful.org.