Gratitude meditation for appreciation (15 min), before an interview

About this practice

When appreciation shows up before an interview, this 15-minute gratitude session gives you somewhere to put it down. A guided session of about 15 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: appreciation

Appreciation deepens by staying, not by listing. A moment held for two breaths registers differently from a moment catalogued.

It tends to show up as:

• Rushing past small kindnesses
• Not noticing ordinary comforts
• Thank-yous left unsaid

Slowing down for a moment is what turns something pleasant into something that stays with you.

Doing this before an interview

• Do it where you will not be interrupted, even if that is a stairwell
• Have the first sentence of your answer ready afterwards
• Keep it short — there is no time for a long session

Nerves before an interview are normal and not something to eliminate. You need access to what you know, nothing more.

How gratitude works

Gratitude here is an attention practice, not a demand for a positive mood. Attention defaults to threats because they are urgent, so pleasant and ordinary things get skipped simply for being safe.

• Pick one ordinary thing rather than something impressive
• Stay with it for two breaths — depth beats length of list
• Do not aim at feeling grateful; aim at noticing

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00If you're sitting, let the chair do the work of holding you upright.
2. 0:13Small efforts are the whole method.
3. 0:23You can let your eyes close now if they weren't already.
4. 0:35Let your breathing find its own pace. We're only going to watch it.
5. 0:48Let your shoulders stay still while your ribs move.
6. 0:59Feel your breath move down your back, all the way to your lower ribs.
7. 1:13Notice your eyebrows. They're probably doing something small right now.
8. 1:25Notice your shoulders, one at a time. The left one first.
9. 1:37Let your whole body be as heavy as it wants to be.
10. 1:50Feel your belly. Let it be soft instead of held in.
11. 2:02Notice your fingers, one by one, starting with the little finger.
12. 2:14You do not have to solve the thank-you waiting to be said in these few minutes. Your only job is to keep breathing while it is here.
13. 2:34There is no correct amount of the overlooked kindnesses to be feeling right now. Whatever is here is the honest amount.
14. 2:51Follow the breath down into your belly and feel it come back up.
15. 3:04You are allowed to be unimpressed by the ordinary moments worth savoring. Indifference is a legitimate response.
16. 3:19Imagine softening the edges of the thank-you waiting to be said. Not erasing it, just letting the sharp parts go a degree softer.
17. 3:37Notice your hands again. Check whether they've loosened on their own.
18. 3:49Let your body keep settling.
19. 3:58Feel the air as it passes the back of your throat. It's cooler going in.
20. 4:12Notice your wrists. They bend a lot in a day.
21. 4:24Let it be this simple.
22. 4:33Let the exhale fall out rather than pushing it.
23. 4:44Feel your face. It's probably softer than it was five minutes ago.
24. 4:57Keep following the air.
25. 5:06Notice your breathing getting quieter on its own, without you deciding anything.
26. 5:19Feel your forearms, from the elbow down to the wrist.
27. 5:31Nothing changes for a moment.
28. 5:40Notice if your breathing is faster than you expected. Don't correct it. Just note it.
29. 5:54Let your thumbs rest wherever they landed.
30. 6:04Let this one be unhurried.
31. 6:13Feel the air move past your upper lip. It's the coolest spot on the way in.
32. 6:28Feel your knees. They're just hinges, but they've worked hard.
33. 6:40No rush to move on.
34. 6:49Notice the difference between the breath at the front of your nose and the breath in your chest.
35. 7:05If you're irritated, that's allowed. Irritation is just weather.
36. 7:16I'll be quiet for a moment. Stay with the breath.
37. 7:28You can be as unimpressive as you like for the next few minutes.
38. 7:41Notice the pull to make this mean something. It doesn't have to.
39. 7:54I'll stop for a moment. Take the pause at your own speed.
40. 8:07If you only manage half of it, that's half more than nothing.
41. 8:20If your mind has wandered, that's not a mistake. Noticing is the practice.
42. 8:33Let's pause. Just the breathing for a while.
43. 8:44We'll take this slowly, and there's no version of this where you get it wrong.
44. 8:58If you're judging your performance, that's the same habit as judging everything else.
45. 9:11I'll step back. You stay here.
46. 9:21Let this be easy, if easy is available.
47. 9:32Notice if you're waiting for something to happen. Nothing is scheduled.
48. 9:44Nothing to follow for a moment except your own breathing.
49. 9:56Nothing here needs to be efficient.
50. 10:06If your mind is quiet, don't grab at it. Quiet comes and goes too.
51. 10:20A short silence. Let it be empty.
52. 10:30There's no need to try harder than this.
53. 10:41If you feel restless, that's a feeling, not a failure.
54. 10:53Notice the breath you're taking right now. That's the only one that exists.
55. 11:06Silence. Let your shoulders drop again if they've crept up.
56. 11:18Nothing about the overlooked kindnesses has to be explained or justified in this room.
57. 11:32Say to yourself: this is uncomfortable, and I can stay with it for one more breath. Then take that breath.
58. 11:49Notice the first breath of the day versus this one. They're the same mechanism.
59. 12:03Give the thank-you waiting to be said a shape, a colour, a temperature. Turning it into something specific makes it easier to hold.
60. 12:21Whatever the overlooked kindnesses is doing right now, your breathing can keep going underneath it.
61. 12:35Let your ribs widen on the in-breath instead of your shoulders lifting.
62. 12:48Notice the exact moment your attention left. You probably won't catch it. That's normal.
63. 13:02You might be planning something. Notice the planning, then come back.
64. 13:14Notice how you're sitting. Adjust if you need to. Then settle again.
65. 13:27Silence for a few breaths. Nothing to do in it.
66. 13:39We'll keep it quiet and unhurried.
67. 13:49Stay here a little longer.
68. 13:58Notice whether you feel any different. If not, that's also normal.
69. 14:10Take one more breath at your own pace, then let your attention come back to the room.

Questions people ask

Meditation is a practice, not a treatment. If you are dealing with ongoing distress, please also reach out to a professional.