Everything, 30 at a time
Every meditation, breathing exercise, sleep story, focus session, guide and essay on SoftlyStill — 6,878 pieces, newest first, 30 to a page.
Gratitude meditation for self-criticism (3 min), at night
Slow, spoken guidance for self-criticism. A gratitude session you can do at night.
Begin →Tired eyes after a long day of screens, for people who have tried everything, on a day that started badly
Eye strain is mostly about distance and blinking, not about blue light glasses.
Read →A 90-minute block for thesis writing, with plain quiet, when you have been meaning to start
A single 90-minute block for thesis writing — sections, not the whole thing.
Start the block →Coherent 5-5 breath (5 · 5) for the early months, after a long day
5 · 5 breathing: five seconds in, five seconds out — about six breaths a minute.
Breathe →Meditation for anxiety: 15-minute self-compassion session, before you talk
Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 15 minutes of self-compassion for anxiety, before you talk.
Begin →Meditation for physical tension: 7-minute body scan session, in the middle of the night
Slow, spoken guidance for physical tension. A body scan session you can do in the middle of the night.
Begin →Why your weekend does not feel like rest — a short read, when you are at home and cannot settle
Rest is not the absence of work. If the weekend is full of decisions and obligations, it does not restore anything.
Read →45-minute focus session for design work with a train carriage, when nothing else has worked today
45 minutes on design work — rough versions first. A single class period, the length most people can hold before the quality drops.
Start the block →6-2-6-2 breathing — 6 · 2 · 6 · 2 — for the commute, when you are waiting for something
A 6 · 2 · 6 · 2 rhythm — even and rhythmic, with brief holds on both sides.
Breathe →3-minute noting meditation for sadness, before a difficult talk
For the times before a difficult talk when sadness takes up more room than you would like — 3 minutes, noting.
Begin →Softening for test anxiety: 12 minutes, on a meeting break
Slow, spoken guidance for test anxiety. A softening session you can do on a meeting break.
Begin →How to get through the first hour without your phone, without the usual nonsense, after eating too much
The first hour sets the tone for attention all day. You do not need willpower — you need the phone to be somewhere else.
Read →50-minute focus session for decluttering with birds at dawn, when you are on your own
50 minutes on decluttering — one surface at a time. Fifty minutes, the length of a therapy hour, with ten minutes off afterwards.
Start the block →Slow box breathing — 5 · 5 · 5 · 5 — for Sunday evening, when you are too tired to try hard
A 5 · 5 · 5 · 5 rhythm — a wider square, once four feels comfortable.
Breathe →7-minute guided body scan practice for sleep — after an argument
For the times after an argument when sleep takes up more room than you would like — 7 minutes, body scan.
Begin →Self-compassion meditation for burnout (20 min), on your commute
Slow, spoken guidance for burnout. A self-compassion session you can do on your commute.
Begin →How to study when you cannot concentrate — the version for a bad week, if you are tired of apps
Concentration is usually a problem of task size, not willpower. Shrink the task until starting feels almost silly.
Read →Deep work timer: 25 minutes of admin and email (white noise), if you are fitting this around other people
One block of admin and email with white noise underneath. One pomodoro, long enough to get somewhere and short enough to start.
Start the block →4-6 breathing — 4 · 6 — for a stolen moment of caregiving, when you are not sure this will work
A 4 · 6 rhythm — in for four, out for six.
Breathe →Morning energy: 12-minute softening meditation, when the news hits hard
For the times when the news hits hard when morning energy takes up more room than you would like — 12 minutes, softening.
Begin →Waking at 3am: 5-minute noting meditation, ahead of a full day
Slow, spoken guidance for waking at 3am. A noting session you can do ahead of a full day.
Begin →A wind-down that starts before you are tired — explained without jargon, if you have done this a hundred times
Waiting until you feel sleepy usually means waiting until midnight. The wind-down is what creates the sleepiness.
Read →Deep work timer: 45 minutes of portfolio work (a stream), when you have more time than usual
One block of portfolio work with a stream underneath. A single class period, the length most people can hold before the quality drops.
Start the block →4-2-6 breathing for the middle of the night, on a day that started badly
A 4 · 2 · 6 rhythm — a short hold in the middle, a long way out.
Breathe →20-minute self-compassion meditation for gratitude, after a horrible day
For the times after a horrible day when gratitude takes up more room than you would like — 20 minutes, self-compassion.
Begin →10-minute body scan meditation for self-criticism, at the end of the day
10 minutes to meet self-criticism with less of a fight. A body scan practice, at the end of the day.
Begin →Waking up anxious for no obvious reason — what actually works, when you have already had a long week
Morning anxiety is common and usually chemical rather than psychological. Cortisol rises steeply in the first hour after waking.
Read →Deep work timer: 90 minutes of problem solving (rain on a window), when you have been putting it off
One block of problem solving with rain on a window underneath. One full ultradian cycle, for work that needs a long runway.
Start the block →Coherent 6-6 breathing for travel days, when you are at home and cannot settle
A 6 · 6 rhythm — six and six, the slower end of coherent breathing.
Breathe →Meditation for anxiety: 5-minute breathing session, before sleep
For the times before sleep when anxiety takes up more room than you would like — 5 minutes, breathing.
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