Sometimes sitting in silence feels like being alone in a room with every thought you’ve ever had. A guided meditation can help. A calm voice, recorded or live, holds the shape of the practice so you don’t have to invent it. That’s useful when you’re new, and just as useful on the days when your mind would simply like some company.

You don’t need a paid app or special furniture. A quiet-enough chair, a voice you enjoy listening to and ten minutes are plenty. Here are five gentle steps.

Before you begin, put your phone on silent, switch off other screens and find a position your back can manage for the length of the track. Morning and evening are often quieter, but a lunch break works too. If you lie down and drift off, that’s a nap, and naps are allowed.

1. Ground yourself

Before you press play, arrive. Feel your feet on the floor and the weight of your body in the chair. Notice the cool air at your nose as you breathe in and the warmer air as you breathe out. There’s no need to change your breathing.

If your mind is still in your inbox, give it a small job: name three things you can see, two you can feel and one you can hear. A gentle shoulder roll or a slow forward fold can help too.

2. Set an intention

This isn’t a goal list. It’s simply a quiet line about how you’d like to meet the next few minutes. I’ll stay for the whole track. I’ll notice when I drift and come back. I’ll be a little kinder in the next hour.

Keep it light and possible. Ten seconds is enough.

3. Choose a recording

Pick a voice you can listen to without bracing, and a length that fits the time you really have. Five minutes is a real practice. Mornings may suit something brighter, evenings something slower. Free recordings from libraries, podcasts and well-known meditation teachers are a fine place to start. If a voice grates on you, try another one. That’s part of finding what works.

4. Sit for a moment afterwards

When the voice stops, don’t leap up straight away. Stay for a few breaths. Notice how your body feels now and what your mind is doing. This little pause helps the calm settle before you return to your day.

5. Carry one line with you

Choose one phrase or image from the meditation and take it with you: a word, a breath, a picture of a quiet lake. Bring it to mind at the kettle, in a queue or before you open a message.

How little is enough

One recording, one week. If it feels good, keep going. If sitting makes you restless, try a walking practice instead. 12 mindfulness exercises to start using daily has plenty of other doors.

And if quiet sitting ever brings up feelings that are heavier than you can hold, stop, and reach out to someone you trust.

There’s more along these lines on the Guides page.