Orientation means getting your bearings: noticing where you are, what is happening and what kind of participation is possible now.
Before you go further into a thought, memory or practice, it can help to know something about the person doing it. Are you tired? Hurried? Comfortable enough? Trying to force a result before an appointment?
Start with the actual room and the actual you.
You may need to change position, close another task, look around or decide that now isn’t the right time for inward attention.
That isn’t a failure to begin. It’s part of beginning with choice.
The I AWAKE books and recordings provide an entry into their practices. You can follow that guidance without making speed or intensity a measure of commitment. The setting and your condition are part of the experience, not inconvenient details outside it.
Grounding describes directing attention towards present, concrete details. Pacing considers how much time and intensity make participation workable for you.
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health’s Meditation and Mindfulness: Effectiveness and Safety gives a wider overview of attention-based practices and safety considerations. It is useful context alongside the particular guidance of a book.