One of the key elements for meditation is: we don’t meditate because we want to be "spiritual." We don’t need to achieve anything and we don’t need to become a certain kind of person.

The notion is, we already are perfect and good. We already have a full set of equipment, right here. We just need to remember we have it.

If the ad says you can attain enlightenment and become a happy guy in 365 days through 5 stages, it is likely not going to happen. Mindfulness practice is not about fixing something, although something may start to shift as a result. Rather, the practice is about realizing that there's nothing to be fixed.

Sometimes we use pause practice as a strategy to work with our habitual reacting mechanism. When strong emotions surface, we see the trigger, and we know that a full body reaction is just about to happen unless we take a pause right there.

It's the strategy to allow space. Take breaths. Observe the triggers. Tune into our body and be present with our body sensation. The urge of reacting and the hook will then slowly fade away.

We already have full capacity to tame our crazy habitual patterns. Our witnessing mind is clear like a luminous sky. Crazy habitual patterns are like all kinds of weather. Simply observe the changing weather, know that the weather will pass, the sky is always luminous and boundless.

The open sky is our true nature. We are already perfectly good. Right here, right now.