The most important part of being at peace is having a clear mind. Once your mind is clear you are able to direct it where you want it to go rather than chase it around like a hyper puppy off its leash.

Most of us really have no idea how much stuff is jammed into our heads until we give ourselves the time and space to let it bubble up and out of the chaos of our subconscious. Have you ever tried to make a list of things to get done only to find your mind gone blank? Yet once you start doing one thing, you immediately think of ten other things that need to get done.

If you really want to see how clear your mind is, sit down to meditate. Start by silently counting your breaths. Breathe in and internally say, "one." Breathe out and silently say, "two." Breathe in saying, "three." See if you can get to ten without losing track of the counting. If your mind drifts off, gently start over at one. After you reach ten, start again at one.

Sounds really simple, doesn't it? My wife and I learned this mediation over at the Zen Center Los Angeles. I thought the instructor was crazy when she said many of us would notice our counting going right on past ten. I thought, "Yeah, right. That won't happen to me. This is so simple! How could anyone not notice that they went past the number ten?"

The second time meditating with this technique, I couldn't believe it. I almost fell over when I realized I just internally said "twelve." I didn't even notice saying "ten" or "eleven" to myself.

Anyway, if you want another more direct route for clearing your mind check back next week. I will post a more practical tool that I learned from David Allen (my personal productivity guru).

Get Into Action

I will be ending each of my blog posts with specific recommended actions to evolve your Self. Here are this week's action options:

1. Meditate using the counting mentioned above. If you are just starting out, try it for five minutes a day.
2. Empty your head by creating a list of incomplete actions (more on this next week).
3. Make LIME.com's Meditation Room the home page on your web browser. Every time you open your browser, you will automatically be taken to another realm and welcome peace of mind into your life.

PS: My son Jack is pictured above when he was about three years old. He turned five this summer. I am constantly inspired to empty my head so I can actually witness and 'be' with him as he grows. 

Doug Miller is a personal and professional life coach enjoying life in Los Angeles with his wife and two boys.  You can learn more about him and his work over at www.coachdoug.com

_{Photo by Linda Frost.}