Meditating by writing

It's been over two years that I have been writing almost daily as the first thing in the morning. I used a bunch of tools & methods over this time, and finally, Craft's calendar view is my go-to tool for it.

I wanted to start meditating regularly but could never build that habit. I even got a Headspace subscription a few times, but what a waste! I get the value of meditating, though. The few times I tried it, I had a much better day. Obviously, the benefits were not immediate, and I only started feeling the difference after a week.

My purpose is to clear my head first thing in the morning. I do it by exercising first. Then, just before diving into work, I type to vomit all my thoughts in Craft for 20 minutes straight. That makes me feel super light. Initially, I used to just write whatever would come into my head, similar to the core guidance of meditation—let all thoughts flow in front of you like clouds. However, I use two specific frameworks for writing (or journaling) in the morning.

The first is trying to answer one specific question. E.g., Should I buy a motorbike? Should we move out to a new place? Should I visit Kolkata next month? and so on. Then, I write for 20-30 minutes, typing all arguments for and against to arrive at an objective, conclusive answer. It works.

The second one is the classic 5-questions format:

• What am I grateful for? Shift into a positive mindset.

• What is the most important task today? Choose the most important, needle-moving task of the day.

• What story-worthy moment happened yesterday? Improve memory and storytelling

• How am I feeling right now? Check in with yourself.

• What's working right now? What could be better? Keeps you on track with your goals and habits.
  

Also, I have just bought the yearly subscription of Waking Up app after recommendations from multiple close friends. I hope to start using it tomorrow onwards.