Meditation can be defined as the unbroken contemplation of an idea for an extended period.
  Note the term unbroken contemplation.
That is not easy to do and takes practice.
  This practice is called concentration.
So the first step to success in meditation is concentration, training the mind to stay focused.
  This is a skill that can help us improve many areas of our lives such as our jobs, our relationships and recreational pursuits like golf, tennis etc.
There are several techniques that can help us improve concentration and one of the safest and best is to pay close attention to our breathing.
Simply feel the breath leaving and entering the nostrils.
Do not force anything, just let it happen and breathe naturally.
If you are like most of us, you will find out just how scattered our mind is! It refuses to focus for more than a few seconds and is off thinking about something else before you know it!  That is OK though and you should calmly observe this process while you gently bring the focus back to the breath.
Do this continuously and before long, you will be able to concentrate for an extended period.
A variation of this technique is to focus on the tip of the second hand on a clock as it travels around the clock face.
Once you are able to concentrate well enough, you proceed to observing your mind and the thoughts that flit through it until you understand clearly that you are not the same as your mind.
  You simply observe without judgement or comment and you will soon realize that you cannot be the same thing as that which you observe.
This is a major realization--understanding that we are other than the mind which is only a part of the physical body.
This realization infuses us with a tremendous feeling of peace and serenity.
With enough practice we are able to remain in a state of conscious sleep for extended periods and this is the level at which most of us will stop as it fulfills our need to relax mentally and reduce stress, the most common objectives.
However, as you continue to meditate on your real self, you eventually understand your oneness with all of creation and the divisions between all life forms vanish.
We realize that we are part of a whole and we develop a feeling of great love.
This is really where meditation begins.
As you probably know, love is one of the greatest powers we possess and it can perform miracles.
Without love, we cannot break through the spiritual bounds and that is the real objective of meditation.
Everything else is a by-product.
A word of caution: The practice of meditation requires a level of physical stability in order to sit motionless for long periods.
  It is not necessary to sit cross legged if that is physically difficult.
A straight-backed chair will do.
  Meditation also requires a level of mental stability that only comes with long practice.
The advanced stages of practice can be fraught with dangers and it is strongly advised to proceed with the help of a qualified teacher or guide right from the beginning.