What mistakes have you made during your meditation practice?
This is a question I’m asked from time to time. But it always makes me pause—are there really such things as mistakes in meditation?
Mistake or Moment of Truth?
Often, we label something a "mistake" when it doesn’t go the way we hoped—or when we believe we did something wrong. But in practice, everything that happens is simply what happened. It is the truth. We can meet it not with judgment, but with inquiry: Was it helpful?
Were my words or actions helpful—to me, to others, and to the situation itself? This perspective shifts us away from right/wrong thinking and toward a more useful question: What can I learn from this?
With that spirit in mind, I’d like to share three habits in my meditation practice that haven’t always been so helpful—and what I’ve learned from them.
1. Being Too Rigid with My Morning Meditation Schedule
For a long time, I had a very fixed morning routine:
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Wake up at 5 a.m.
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Do 108 prostrations
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20 minutes of chanting
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30 minutes of sitting
One morning, I slept in and got up at 5:15 a.m. Immediately, I thought, “I missed my prostrations—guess I can’t do my practice today.” That kind of rigid thinking came from years of living in Zen Centers and training on strict retreat schedules. But outside of those settings, it can become a hindrance.
The truth is, life is always changing—travel, health, family, sleep. Being too strict can lead to burnout or even giving up altogether.
What’s more helpful? Be flexible. Be honest. Do something. Even 10 minutes of sitting is better than skipping practice completely. And it’s far more sustainable than doing three hours of practice twice a week and then stopping altogether.
Consistency matters more than intensity.
2. Falling Out of the Habit
Like many people, I’ve fallen out of the habit of morning practice—especially after being sick or traveling. Getting back into the rhythm can feel surprisingly hard.
The key is momentum. Miss one day, and it’s easier to miss the next. Miss three days, and suddenly you’ve created a new habit—of not practicing.
The good news? The same truth works in your favor. Do your practice three days in a row, and you’ve restarted your practice routine.
For me, it often comes down to a simple decision the night before:
Set the alarm. Commit to getting up. Sit.
That’s it. Start small, and let consistency rebuild your momentum.
If you’re struggling with motivation, I’ve made a video about that.
3. Trying to Solve Problems During Meditation
This one’s big. I still catch myself doing it sometimes: I sit to meditate… and five minutes in, I’m planning my day, solving a problem, or working through a conversation in my head.
It’s like talking to someone—trying to listen, but you’re planning your next vacation. You’re there, but not really there. That disconnect creates problems in our relationships, and it creates problems in our practice too.
Meditation—especially Zen or mindfulness-based practice—is about one thing:
Being fully present.
Just sitting. Just breathing. Just hearing, seeing, feeling.
Of course, there’s a time for planning and problem-solving. But that time is not during meditation. When we treat sitting as a space to simply return—again and again—to this moment, it trains us to do the same in everyday life.
Driving? Just drive.
Working? Just work.
Talking? Just listen.
This kind of presence transforms our relationships and our lives. It’s not only beneficial for us—it’s a gift to everyone around us.
Final Reflection
So if we look at so-called “mistakes” in meditation, the real question isn’t Did I do it right?—it’s Was it helpful?
And perhaps even more important: What is my job in this moment?
Meditation teaches us to return to this moment, again and again, with clarity and intention. That clarity doesn’t end on the cushion—it is expressed outward into how we live, work, and relate to this world.
