Powerful. Flexible. Intuitive. Innovative. Transformative.
Meditation is a buzz word that is hitting the internet hard these days.
Self-hypnosis is also growing in popularity. Although these two disciplines are very similar to each other, there are some key differences that make them quite unique.
The difference between self-hypnosis and meditation involves how an individual is able to focus their mind. Each practice requires a very specific understanding of techniques, leading to different implementation approaches.
Here Is How the Two Practices Differ
#1. Meditation is essentially a trance that is created within the inner mind
The goal is to create clarity within the mind in order to create more energy. Specific types of meditation may also accomplish niche goals, such as promoting personal empathy, exploring wisdom, or even healing.
Meditation offers mantras or prayers when practiced alone. Guided meditation typically provides instructions to reach a state of clarity.
Self-hypnosis is generally about direction. There are specific instructions that are given to individuals that must be followed.
Sometimes these directions can be self-directed, but they often must come from an outside source. This is especially true for those who haven’t really exposed themselves to the practice of self-hypnosis in the past.
#2. Self-hypnosis provides specific directions
Whereas meditation typically has multiple goals that are sought, self-hypnosis typically has just one goal to reach.
Most people need some sort of guidance to reach a hypnotic state, so self-hypnosis products are used as an influential factor.
The most common product is a recorded hypnosis session that is played over headphones. Some people can induce a self-hypnotic state on their own without any help, but this is a rare talent. On the other hand, everyone can meditate.
An easy way to get started with self-hypnosis is through a download. Hypnosis Live offers specific courses that are designed to help meet life goals. From weight loss to better work production, there is something available for virtually everyone.
#3. Meditation explores openness while self-hypnosis explores darker corners
To put it another way, meditation is about recovery and balance while self-hypnosis is about control.
People who feel like they don’t control their own journey of life may benefit more from self-hypnosis because they could be repressing troublesome memories or gotten into the habit of denying their emotions.
Meditation is more about finding energy, clarity, and problem-solving so that the mind can recover from the stress, worries, and issues of the day.
Instead of finding repressed memories or removing false assumptions, meditation is like a coping skill that can examine what went right during the day, what went wrong, and how those wrongs can be reduced.
#4. Meditation is a duality
Meditation is about establishing a foundation of communication between your outer mind [the one you’re using to read this right now] and your inner mind [the one that controls your subconscious].
By creating a bridge between these two mental realities, a person is able to get in touch with their core feelings and thoughts to have a better understanding of who they are at a core level.
Self-hypnosis is more of a singularity in the fact that the inner mind, the subconscious, is following a determined path that is being charted for it.
#5. Believe it or not, meditation is actually undirected
If you read any meditation advice columns, you’ll find a lot of different directions. You might even be told that you must accomplish these specific directions in order to meditate properly.
- Clear your mind of all thoughts and cast aside any racing ideas.
- Focus on your breathing and consciously slow down its rate.
- Find one specific point of focus and then explore it carefully.
These are directions, but the outcome is undirected. That’s the difference between self-hypnosis and meditation.
You might be following instructions, but you don’t have any idea what the outcome will be when you do – even if you’re a well-seasoned meditation expert.
Self-hypnosis has an expectation of an outcome, making it a directed process.
#6. Meditation is about the here and now
When you’re meditating, you’re attempting to find the perfection that exists in any given moment.
There is a powerful belief that even in the deepest, darkest tragedies of human existence, there is still a glimmer of hope that can be found if we’re willing to open our eyes and look for it.
Meditation helps us to find those perfect moments, learn from them, and then use that knowledge to change the world within our sphere of influence.
Self-hypnosis takes a different approach. Instead of looking at the present moment from perfection, it attempts to draw on information from the past to help create a better future.
By remembering what you have learned, the knowledge can then be applied to a future self through a visualization mental matrix so it becomes possible to envision new possibilities.
Here Is How the Two Practices Are the Same
#1. They are both remarkably effective at lowering stress
Even here there are some differences to explore. Meditation typically focuses on general health needs or creating barriers against stress.
There might be specific incidents to explore while meditating or problems to solve, but the end result is that a person feels better from an overall perspective.
Self-hypnosis will usually focus on one very specific health or stress issue and attempt to resolve it.
#2. Both effectively quiet down the mind
Even if all someone can commit to meditation or self-hypnosis is 10 minutes per day, the act of keeping the mind clear of thoughts, actions, or even emotions is like restarting a computer that has begun to error out.
You get to turn the supercomputer that controls your every thought and action off and then on again. The end result is better operations because the error codes have been removed.
#3. Both remove self-imposed limitations
Are any of these thoughts or ideas familiar?
- “I just don’t seem to be very good at meditation since I don’t see any benefits coming from it.”
- “I have a hard time trusting people, so I don’t see self-hypnosis being of any help to me.”
- “I’ve heard so many people try these things and fail. I just don’t want to waste my time.”
Thoughts or ideas like these are self-imposed barriers that we put up to deny ourselves the changes we want to see in our lives.
These barriers come up everywhere and appear every day. Meditation and self-hypnosis can put cracks into these barriers so that everyone is able to achieve their full potential every day.
These practices remove our self-imposed limitations over time, correct the assumptions we’ve all turned into facts, and then replaces these actions with a new one: to constantly challenge oneself.
#4. They both suppress the imagination and creative centers of the mind
Meditation and self-hypnosis are both designed to build-up an individual’s awareness on certain issues. There isn’t any creativity allowed in this process. It is simply observation, direction, and learning.
Which Practice Is Right For You?
In theory, a person would benefit the most from having one 10-20 minute meditation session and one 10-20 minute self-hypnosis session every day.
This way the past, present, and the future can all be observed on a daily basis for a 360 degree level of awareness.
In reality, most people struggle to put up a 10 minute meditation session at first and wouldn’t know how to begin a self-hypnosis session without some help from their favorite search engine.
That’s not a knock on people. It’s just a reflection of how busy life has become today. The world is a very small place.
The information on just one website is more than the average person received over the course of an entire year in the 19th century. The average person has 5-7 browser tabs open simultaneously and may visit 50+ websites every day.
That’s busy… and it doesn’t even begin to include professional responsibilities
Here’s the benefit: by taking time to reset the mind, either for the present or to draw from the past to envision a better future, it becomes possible to absorb more information and keep that data relevant.
In other words, we feel like we don’t have time for meditation or self-hypnosis, so we don’t do it. Yet when these concepts are applied every day, it becomes possible to critically analyze more data and become more efficient.
The difference between self-hypnosis and meditation is rather simple at its core. Both are highly beneficial.
If you haven’t started using self-hypnosis downloads or scheduled time to meditate, then you’re missing out on something special.
Take the 10 day challenge. Commit right now to 10 consecutive days of meditation or self-hypnosis. At the end of the tenth day, take stock of how you feel.
If you don’t see benefits, then you can say you tried. If you see benefits, then you’ll be able to really take control of who you are and what you do.
You may also be interested in:
1. Self-Hypnosis MP3 Audio Downloads
4. Profound Meditation Program