A one minute meditation is any practice you can do in 60 seconds or less to calm your mind, connect inward, and pull yourself into present awareness. These short meditations help you incorporate reflection into busy days — especially when you feel too overwhelmed for longer sessions.
In an ideal world, we’d all have time for lengthy meditations, journaling, walks in nature, and paying full attention to each moment. Wouldn’t that be wonderful!
These 100 meditation scripts were created to help beginner and intermediate meditators practice key mindfulness concepts like self-love, forgiveness, gratitude, and inner peace.
Designed to fit into busy schedules, each meditation script lasts 3-5 minutes. Perfect for starting or closing a group meditation; for yoga, coaching, or therapy sessions; or for your personal meditation practice.
But real life is often too full and fast-paced for that. Many struggle to make space for stillness.
That’s why having tools like these quick meditations and one-minute mindfulness exercises matters: it’s a collection of simple, accessible practices like mindful breathing. For those who frequently can’t fit meditation in, incorporating tiny breaks for centering may be just the solution.
Even one mindful minute can provide respite, helping halt escalating stress. Over time, these small infusions of peace add up, nurturing calm and wisdom. By briefly resting the senses, a refreshing perspective emerges, clarifying priorities for the hours ahead.
15 One Minute Meditations
These 15 one minute meditation scripts will help you quickly reset your nervous system. The goal is that they’re short enough to remember when you’re out and about- remember, you can do these meditations any time, anywhere.
You can also use the videos in this list to guide you.
1. Body Scan Meditation
Find a comfortable seat, allowing your body to relax and eyes to gently close.
Bring warm awareness first to the crown of your head, then let it trickle slowly over your scalp and face. Scan downward through the neck, shoulders, back and chest, noticing any sensations without judgment. Move down through the belly, hips, legs all the way to the toes.
If tension arises, direct a long, soothing exhale right to that spot.
2. Breath-counting Meditation
Settle into an upright, stable posture, spine lengthened.
Allow your eyes to gently close and turn attention inward to your breath. Silently count each full inhalation and exhalation from one to five. At the start of the next breath cycle, begin again at one. If you lose track, simply start over without self-judgment.
Ride each inhale and exhale with focused, caring attention for one minute.
3. Visualization Meditation
Find a comfortable seat, allowing your body to relax and eyes to gently close.
Picture yourself walking slowly through a beautiful, tranquil forest. Hear soothing natural sounds around you – a woodpecker tapping, leaves rustling, a distant stream gurgling. Inhale the fresh woody scents, reach out to touch soft mosses, gentle flowers and textured bark.
Allow each sense to fully immerse for one minute.
4. Loving-kindness meditation
Settle into a relaxed, upright pose.
As you inhale, silently say to yourself: “I’m sending love to myself.” On the exhale, extend this wish outward: “to those I love, and to all people around the world.”
Repeat this cycle, envisioning waves of compassion flowing from your heart to all beings who struggle, for one minute.
5. Gratitude meditation
Come into a posture of receptivity, spine lengthened, allowing your eyes to gently close.
Bring to mind something arising in this moment for which you feel grateful – maybe a sound, scent or simple pleasure. Allow the uplifting energy of gratitude for these small gifts sustaining your life to swell within for one minute.
Send thankfulness out into the world.
6. Senses Meditation
Find a comfortable seat, relax your gaze, and lift attention to your senses.
Notice a subtle exterior sound, scent, sight, taste or touch just as it is without judgment.
Consciously relax into pure observation for one minute, letting stimuli simply come and go of their own accord.
7. Self-Compassion Meditation
Sit comfortably with eyes closed and breathe slowly.
Place one hand gently on your heart center, feeling its radiant warmth. Send yourself kind, caring words as if from your closest, most understanding friend.
Receive this compassion into every cell. You deserve comfort.
8. Relaxation Meditation
Come into a pose of natural comfort, allowing your senses to open.
With each long, slow exhalation consciously release any tension discovered in the body and mind. Scan systematically from the crown down through all muscles and organs, pouring out stress until your whole being is soaked in calm relaxation.
9. Stress Relief Meditation
Sit comfortably, close your eyes, and place your palms down onto thighs.
With each slow exhale, consciously scan and intentionally soothe any tension discovered in body and mind. Pour out tightness and drain away negative emotions until your whole being resonates with calm presence for one full minute.
10. Belly Breathing
Sit or lie flat in a comfortable way. Rest a hand on your lower abdomen.
On each long inhale, send breath deeply into the belly visualizing expansion. On each exhale feel the hand sink inwards, releasing all stress and busyness from the core.
11. Square Breathing
Settle into an upright, stable pose and breathe out long and slow.
Inhale smoothly while counting 1,2,3,4 in your mind. Hold for the same count. Exhale for a 4 count. Hold empty lungs for another slow 4 count.
Repeat this square rhythm for one minute.
12. 4-7-8 Breathing
Assume an upright posture.
Exhale completely through the mouth. Close lips and inhale slowly through the nose for a count of 4. Hold for 7. Exhale steadily for a count of 8.
Pause briefly before repeating for one full cycle over one minute.
13. Alternate Nostril
Sit with your spine lengthened.
Exhale fully then gently press one nostril closed. Inhale smoothly through the open nostril for a 4 count. Close the open nostril, release the pressed one, exhale for 4 and inhale for 4 again.
Continue alternating sides rhythmically for one minute.
14. Anchoring Meditation
Find a comfortable seat and allow your eyes to gently close.
Bring full attention to the place where fingertips meet palms. Tune into subtle sensations of texture and pressure here.
Relax completely into feeling tone at these connected points until fully immersed in quiet observation.
15. Half Smile Meditation
Sit with your spine lengthened and a quality of joyous confidence.
Soften the eyes, relax smooth face muscles. Allow the slight upward turn of a delicate smile to emerge without effort, eyes and mouth both grinning. Receive this warmth into your being for one minute.
My mindfulness practice kicked off in 2016 with a ten-day silent retreat. Since then, I’ve read dozens of books about mindfulness and completed hundreds of hours of meditation. Thinking about what makes humans happy, calm, and peaceful is endlessly fascinating to me.