I met Lou two months ago at a group meditation he was leading at 4XMG Studio in Nutley, NJ. I was very impressed by his story and skills at leading the meditations, so I decided to interview him and find out more.
Lou is a public speaker and motivator. He leads group meditations and also offers guided meditations on YouTube and on Insight Timer.
He recently wrote a book about his story, which will be available in February.
What was your life like before you came across meditation/mindfulness?
My life before meditation was unfocused at best. I lacked a real sense of purpose. I was not aware of my actions and the results that were following. My “why” was unclear and clouded.
Before meditation I thought the purpose in life was to “Have Fun.” I found my excitement on the weekends through partying which involved a lot of drugs and alcohol. That started to take a toll on my body and emotional well-being.
What was the turning point for you that made you decide to seek other ways of handling things?
I hit my “rock bottom” as far as drug use went. It wasn’t really a one-off occurrence, rather week after week of building myself back up during the work week only to see it come crashing down as the weekend came. Many sleepless nights I would lie awake with these depressing hangovers. I finally hit a point where I understood what it was doing to my body and decided it was time for a new way of being.
What approaches have you tried before developing your own?
I’ve tried many different meditation approaches including mindfulness, breath work, and visualization, just to name a few. I’ve also done some work with NLP (Neural Linguistic Programing) which, like meditation, brings you to a deeper place within yourself.
Explain what your approach is about.
What resonated with me most was visualization and journey meditation. I believe whatever the mind can imagine can make its way to physical reality. By visualizing through meditation and taking yourself on a journey of your life, you charge the cells in your body and give more energy to what you envision.
Steps:
- Get in your favorite meditation space and start enlivening your body with your breath.
- Bring to mind a future you. This future you has accomplished all your wildest dreams. Take notice what this person looks like.
- Now let your mind run wild with what those dreams are. How do they look in your mind’s eye?
- How does your body feel when seeing this? Work to cultivate the feeling of what it would be like to attain your wildest dreams.
- Breathe into this feeling! Breathe deeper, own this fantasy world you created and truly believe that you have all your dreams accomplished NOW.
- When you can bring the feeling into your current state of being of how you want your future self to be, your mind thinks it’s reality and will work to bring that into your life.
How did you develop your approach?
My approach is still evolving, which is exactly what life and meditation are about. I like to experiment with new things and most of all, have fun with what I’m doing. We’re not meant to be the same. Everything around us is changing and evolving. If we’re not on that path, then we are falling behind.
My approach is still evolving, which is exactly what life and meditation are about. I like to experiment with new things and most of all, have fun with what I’m doing. We’re not meant to be the same. Everything around us is changing and evolving. If we’re not on that path, then we are falling behind.
You should always be trying new things and questioning the habits and routines you find yourself in. That’s what growth and transformation are all about.
How did you actually discover meditation? How was your first time like?
I tried meditation simply because I saw that successful people around me were doing it. It didn’t take off for me for a couple of months. I believe meditation is like and instrument. We’re not going to be good at first. We have to learn to play by showing up and practicing. Then we’ll begin to feel the flow and the sweet sounds it can bring.
What is your favorite thing about meditation?
I love that it’s always with us. We can always take thirty seconds to close our eyes and breathe, no matter what situation we find ourselves in. The breath is the best tool humans have been given. I have a vision that one day we are all living our lives in full meditation. J
How can people learn more about you or contact you?
My website, louredmond.com has more about who I am and what my purpose around meditation is. There you can find motivational videos as well as free guided meditations. You can also contact me through there. If you’re on Instagram or Twitter follow me @louspeakstruth.
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Thank you, Lou, for taking the time to do this interview!
Website: louredmond.com
Facebook: lou.redmond.1
Twitter: @louspeakstruth
Instagram: @louspeakstruth
Guided Meditations
Meetup Group (in Nutley, NJ): Meditation in New Jersey
Lou's upcoming book, Find Your Truth, will be published in February. I pre-ordered mine on Lou's IndieGoGo campaign. His goal was reached and the deadline has passed since then (yay!), bu you can still pre-order his book on that site, or contact Lou directly using his contact form to pre-order your copy.
Back Cover:
From a drug-fueled existence to quitting my 9-5 to pursue my dream, Find Your Truth is the story of how I drastically transformed my life from a passion for partying to a passion for living with purpose, love, and meaning. I share the steps I took to change my life - steps which you can take to find a deeper connection to yourself and your greater purpose.
This four-minute video explains more about his book and his story.
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