Six tricks to help you meditate

All my reading seems to indicate that people think meditation is important and good for you. And for many years I've tried various forms of meditation, but none of them have stuck. Until I discovered a few tricks

1: You want to clear your mind: the easiest way to do this is to pay attention to your body: Your mind can only hold between 5 and 7 ideas at the same time - if one of them is your breathing, and another four are the feelings in your hands and feet, then you are well on your way to not having space to be distracted by other thoughts

2: John Gray suggests lying down and holding your hands above shoulder height. This absolutely helps you pay attention to them

3: A mantra is another thing you can pay attention to. Frankly a mantra can be anything, but I'm quite keep on John Grays "Oh Great Universe, my heart is open, please come into it and sit in it

4: When you have a thought that distracts you from the meditation, that isn't bad. Its natural. Just notice that you're thinking about it, and let it go away.

5: Sometimes thoughts come back again and again: did you leave the gas on? How long have you been at this now? Was that a noise downstairs? if this happens, stop meditating and go and have a look. These thoughts will only keep distracting you if you don't. There is no law that says how long you have to meditate for, or that you can't take a break in the middle.

6: Try buzzing while meditating. Its fun.