Meditation and no-follow links

Tuesday, April 22, 2014 Permalink

In the online (and blogging world) when providing a link to another website we’re encouraged to use ‘no-follow’ links. I’m not completely across the issue (so feel free to research it for yourself) but as I understand it, no-follow links prevent Googlebots from transferring visitors or stats from your own site to another. Plus – you get penalised by Google (in terms of your searchability) if you’re getting paid to link to other sites.

Like I said, I’m only just getting on top of this issue, which is why it may have been on my mind recently. (Plus I obsess about stuff. So… there’s that.)

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I was a bit stressed a week or so ago and not sleeping well. Unusually for me I was waking early with time to kill so decided I’d try meditating for a few minutes first thing each morning. I still tend to worry about doing it ‘right’ but read something recommending we count our breaths… So, I started breathing in and out slowly – five counts for each. In for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; and out for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Interestingly I do find counting helps keep me focussed, as I find the concept of ’emptying my mind’ almost impossible. I mean… we have to have SOMETHING in / on our mind, don’t we?

Although (as an aside) I am intrigued about coma patients as my father spent 6 days in a coma before passing away and I can’t help but wonder what / if he was thinking.

I’ve talked before about my busy busy mind. Indeed, many years ago (at a yoga class) I learnt an intriguing meditation technique. It basically involved imagining we were in an elevator and watching the numbers on a little screen change in descending order. You know… as we travelled down floors: 25, 24, 23 etc. I’m not particularly visual but discovered I could picture the numbers and ‘process’ them.

However, I was easily distracted.

Indeed… I struggled so much to get from one number to the next without thinking about other things and losing track of where I was up to that I wondered if I needed professional help. (Well, more professional help!) 😉

I must admit I have the same issue when trying to count to just 5.

Despite the counting my mind keeps trying to wander… however I find that IF I’m forcing myself to count it isn’t really free to move anywhere else; it has to stay in the moment. In the number sequence. Like a no-follow link I realised – unable to zip about and visit other sites thoughts.

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I discussed this dilemma during my recent coaching session with Michaela. She reassured me that there really is no ‘wrong’ way to meditate and I shouldn’t be as angsty about it. So… rather than deal with the stress of counting (!!!) I’ve started doing some affirmations during my 5 minute meditation session. I’ve not been overly ambitious to date so am mostly going with the not-very-esoteric stuff like:  “I will not lose my shit today. I will not lose my shit today.”

Start small. That’s my motto.

Are no-follow links new to you?
How’s your focus; or, if you meditate, do you struggle to stay on track?
Finally, am I the best analogy-maker in the world, or what?! 

I’m joining again with Jess and her IBOT link-up today.

20 Comments
  • Char
    April 22, 2014

    My motto today was going to be ‘I can only do what I can do’ but I like yours a lot better.

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      Oh yes… I was getting stressed even though I shouldn’t have been and it was annoying me!

  • Tara@HandMeMySanity
    April 22, 2014

    I’ve tried meditation a few times, but I never seem to be able to empty my mind properly and let it happen. So now I podcast instead. If someone else is talking in my head and I find it interesting, all of my particular crap seems to go away. It’s perfect preoccupation!
    My motto every day is ‘there’s only one outstandingly ordinary me’. Not only does this remind me, on days when I’m feeling full of Mummy fail, that I’m the only mum my kids have, but it reminds me to set realistic goals. Enough stuff for one ordinary person.
    I’m popping over from #IBOT, thanks for a fantastic read!

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      You’re welcome Tara and thanks for dropping by!

  • Jody at Six Little Hearts
    April 22, 2014

    Good on you for trying. I have never been able to meditate. My mind never shuts up. I fear for my seven year old because I can see his personality is very similar to mine; his brain is always firing. After 2 university qualifications back to back and on top of year 12, with no break, I was burnt out by 24! Meditation would be lovely. Sleep would be lovely! I have had to learn that neither will ever visit me or serve me well!

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      I’m a bit like that but ‘determined’ to get there. Dammit!

  • Bec @ The Plumbette
    April 22, 2014

    I have heard about the no follow links on blog posts. With meditation, I need to try harder at it. I find I either fall asleep or my mind wanders elsewhere and I make a mental list of things that I need to get done. Your mantra made me smile thought. 🙂

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      Oh less… I decided to aim low with that mantra!!!

  • Sarah from Creating Contentment
    April 22, 2014

    There is no wrong way to meditate, but I would recommend that you change your affirmation to the positive. For example, “I will stay together”, “I will stay on track”, “I can focus”, are a few versions of your mantra that I came up with quickly. Affirmations are meant to be positive, and the brain tends to not here the ‘not’ in the phrase, instead hearing “I will lose my shit”. As, an interesting fact too, our speech therapist recommends always talking in the positive (not because it is good parenting, though it is), because of how the brain works. Children also struggle to learn these negative phrases. So, yeah … keep your mantra positive and it will work better. Promise. I wrote more about it here http://creatingcontentment.com/talk-yourself-positive/ , if your interested. xS

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      Thanks for that Sarah, I’ll check it out. (I do sometimes tell myself that I’ll remain calm etc…) 😉

  • Lee-Anne
    April 22, 2014

    The benefits of meditation are great if you can manage it but I usually only manage a light doze! But that’s refreshing too.

    That un-follow link stuff is much too complicated for moi. I have a vegie brain when it comes to technology (which is why I particularly love your motto 🙂

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      I was very #meh about the no-follow links until a few conversations on a FB bloggers group. I’m always talking about books I’m reviewing and TV shows etc. None of which i get paid for… so I really don’t know how much that stuff impacts!!!

  • Kylie Purtell
    April 22, 2014

    I’ve tried meditation but I always fall asleep!

    As for no-follow links, I’ve not really bothered much and haven’t seen any problems from it, but might be worth reading more. #teamIBOT

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      I’d love to blame NF links for my pitiful stats, but sadly I don’t think I can! 😉

  • Jo Tracey
    April 22, 2014

    I’m trying that elevator trick!

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      I really liked it Jo… I’d picture big fluorescent numbers (hard for me as I’m not visual) but it scared the bejesus out of me that I couldn’t focus on getting from one number to the next!

  • EssentiallyJess
    April 22, 2014

    Very cool analogy 🙂
    I’ve never tried meditating per se, but I’m a bit like you, thinking we always need to think about something.I think you’re motto though is pretty much perfect.

    • Debbish
      April 22, 2014

      Ah yes…. it’s kind of a ‘catch-all’ motto really!

      And I agree. It occurred to me that our minds must always contain SOMETHING – even if we’re just counting or thinking about our breathing.

  • Lisa@RandomActsOfZen
    April 24, 2014

    Deb, we really are in tune aren’t we, with our writing about meditation? So hard to get that mind to stop ticking!!
    I love your affirmation, perfect start to the day 😉

I'd love to hear your thoughts