Mindfulness is about paying attention, being in the present moment and enhancing our awareness of ourselves, others and what is around us. Through practicing to be mindful - various qualities are strengthened such as acceptance and non-judgement. It is a subtle practice that can help us to better understand our thoughts, our emotions, our reactions. It can help build better emotional intelligence, balance and happiness.
Meditation is a key practice within the mindfulness approach. What you learn in those sittings, you will then apply to whatever you are doing in daily life. There are some key elements to mindfulness. I’ve summarised eight key points below:
One of the key elements of mindfulness is about being present, being in the moment. How often do you arrive at work and wonder how you got there because you hadn’t been paying attention to the journey? We spend a lot of time on auto pilot where our minds carry us away into what we are going to do next, or what we did yesterday, our worries, concerns, fears, our plans. We have been absorbed in our thoughts. Mindfulness practice helps us to connect to the present moment and cultivate awareness of what is there.
But why is this important? We can sometimes have a sense of wanting to be somewhere else. Or for things to another way. Often there can be a sense of 'the grass is greener' about time - 'I will be happy when that happens, or when I get there, or when this is over'. If we can learn to be more present and in the moment - whether doing something fun or doing something routine - we actually get more time back, we appreciate things more, spot things we wouldn't do if we were always wanting to get to the next moment. Ultimately - this is the moment we have - so why not show up and be present.
One of the core elements of mindfulness practice is being able to shift between analysing using thoughts to just sensing (focusing on touch, sound, smell, sight). Being able to shift between these modes, means that we can learn to observe what is happening to us - even if it is difficult. If it is pain, then we can focus on the sensations. How are we experiencing that pain physically - what are our senses telling us about that pain? How is it affecting the body? We can spend a lot of time trying to avoid or get rid of symptoms of illness or stress but they often don't go away because we are either unable to make them go away (if we are ill) or because we aren't dealing with the causes of stress. Mindfulness is being used as a way of complementing modern medicine in dealing with a host of illnesses, stress, depression, anxiety. It is helping people to find ways to face these challenges.
We go through numerous experiences everyday that deplete our energy without us realising it. Mindfulness can help us to realise which activities are depleting energy and which are nourishing us. Or which activities could nourish us if we actually directly experienced them rather than spending the time judging the experience, or being distracted. For example, a cycle to work can be nourishing if we breathe, feel the sun on our skin, listen to the sounds around etc. Or it could be depleting if spend that time starting to get stressed about all of the things that have to get done that day - arriving at work feeling wound up and not really knowing how we got there. Mindfulness helps us to let go of thoughts, and have a beginner's mind - as if we are appreciating things for the first time. When you watch a child you soon see what beginners mind is. And it is an option to approach life in that way but it takes some practice.
Meditation is a key practice within the mindfulness approach. What you learn in those sittings, you will then apply to whatever you are doing in daily life. There are some key elements to mindfulness. I’ve summarised eight key points below:
One of the key elements of mindfulness is about being present, being in the moment. How often do you arrive at work and wonder how you got there because you hadn’t been paying attention to the journey? We spend a lot of time on auto pilot where our minds carry us away into what we are going to do next, or what we did yesterday, our worries, concerns, fears, our plans. We have been absorbed in our thoughts. Mindfulness practice helps us to connect to the present moment and cultivate awareness of what is there.
But why is this important? We can sometimes have a sense of wanting to be somewhere else. Or for things to another way. Often there can be a sense of 'the grass is greener' about time - 'I will be happy when that happens, or when I get there, or when this is over'. If we can learn to be more present and in the moment - whether doing something fun or doing something routine - we actually get more time back, we appreciate things more, spot things we wouldn't do if we were always wanting to get to the next moment. Ultimately - this is the moment we have - so why not show up and be present.
Our thoughts – which we easily get caught in – can be quite harsh. How often do we tell ourselves that we have done
wrong? Judge ourselves or others? Doubt whether we can do
things? Get angry with our situation? Go around in spirals thinking about something - unable to let it go? Our thoughts can be self-limiting and
affect our confidence. They can cause stress which can affect our behaviour or
our physical health. Depression is on the rise and the use of anti-depressants is increasing. Mindfulness helps us to watch
our thoughts and gain some detachment from them. It helps us to not get caught up in them, to ruminate unhelpfully, to identify with them so much. This is
tricky concept but next time you are thinking, try and catch yourself thinking
and take a breath. The fact that you can ‘watch’ or ‘catch’ yourself thinking,
shows that there is a ‘you’ which is not your thoughts. This gap between you and your thoughts is explored in the mindfulness journey and can make a real difference to how you experience life. Being able to observe our thinking and observe our physical reaction to the thoughts we have had, helps to lessen their grip on us - leaving us to feel a sense of calm and balance.
We live in the age of having
and doing and very little in
the realm of being. Our sense of identity is so often
defined by the jobs we do, the car we drive, the clothes we wear. What about
the essential you that just is? When did that stop being enough?
Meditation is about being which is why so many people find it
difficult to ‘do’ because they are thinking about all the things they need to
do, or wanting to rush on to the next thing. Meditation gives us an opportunity to explore who we are in this moment. Through meditation, we notice how much the mind wanders. Meditation is not about not thinking or ‘relaxing’ it is about watching
your mind, noticing it wandering and gently bringing it back. And not judging yourself
for having a monkey mind or giving up because it won’t settle. This is what
minds do and through meditation we come to understand the nature of the mind.
Often our attention
is not actually where we want it to be. How many times have you tried to
concentrate on something and found your mind wandering? Even if you want to
concentrate – sometimes it seems impossible. Mindfulness helps us to practice
the skill of paying attention. We so often slip into autopilot and disengage
from the present moment without meaning or wanting to.
Mindfulness helps us to respond or act and not just react to situations. Sometimes we get so caught up in thinking that it is difficult to really see what is happening - to have insight into a situation which might help us to deal with it. We react quickly - driven by a myriad of thoughts and corresponding feelings. Or driven by learned behaviours which have become so ingrained in us that it is hard to see that there is another way to respond. What if there are options or alternatives? Acceptance is an incredibly powerful quality and can change the way we respond. Accepting the way things are doesn't mean passivity. It means things are the way they are. So start there - rather than rejecting, denying the way things are. It doesn't mean you can't work towards changing a situation, but you will do that much better if you start from how things are. Non-judgement is another powerful quality. None of these qualities come easily which is why mindfulness is a journey and a process.
Mindfulness helps us to respond or act and not just react to situations. Sometimes we get so caught up in thinking that it is difficult to really see what is happening - to have insight into a situation which might help us to deal with it. We react quickly - driven by a myriad of thoughts and corresponding feelings. Or driven by learned behaviours which have become so ingrained in us that it is hard to see that there is another way to respond. What if there are options or alternatives? Acceptance is an incredibly powerful quality and can change the way we respond. Accepting the way things are doesn't mean passivity. It means things are the way they are. So start there - rather than rejecting, denying the way things are. It doesn't mean you can't work towards changing a situation, but you will do that much better if you start from how things are. Non-judgement is another powerful quality. None of these qualities come easily which is why mindfulness is a journey and a process.
One of the core elements of mindfulness practice is being able to shift between analysing using thoughts to just sensing (focusing on touch, sound, smell, sight). Being able to shift between these modes, means that we can learn to observe what is happening to us - even if it is difficult. If it is pain, then we can focus on the sensations. How are we experiencing that pain physically - what are our senses telling us about that pain? How is it affecting the body? We can spend a lot of time trying to avoid or get rid of symptoms of illness or stress but they often don't go away because we are either unable to make them go away (if we are ill) or because we aren't dealing with the causes of stress. Mindfulness is being used as a way of complementing modern medicine in dealing with a host of illnesses, stress, depression, anxiety. It is helping people to find ways to face these challenges.
We go through numerous experiences everyday that deplete our energy without us realising it. Mindfulness can help us to realise which activities are depleting energy and which are nourishing us. Or which activities could nourish us if we actually directly experienced them rather than spending the time judging the experience, or being distracted. For example, a cycle to work can be nourishing if we breathe, feel the sun on our skin, listen to the sounds around etc. Or it could be depleting if spend that time starting to get stressed about all of the things that have to get done that day - arriving at work feeling wound up and not really knowing how we got there. Mindfulness helps us to let go of thoughts, and have a beginner's mind - as if we are appreciating things for the first time. When you watch a child you soon see what beginners mind is. And it is an option to approach life in that way but it takes some practice.
What next?
I highly recommend reading some of the books in the ‘Resources for You’ section and doing an 8 week course such as Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy which you can do using a book (see MarkWilliams - frantic world book in the 'Resources for You' section) or even better do an 8 week course with a group.
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