Mindfulness – what does it me to me?
When I first heard the term mindfulness I must confess I switched off a little. I felt it was more about meditation and that’s not really my thing. But the term mindfulness continues to crop up time and time again so I decided to understand what it meant to me.
I found this definition online:
“Mindfulness is purposefully paying attention to things in the present moment without judgement. It is about taking a step back, being aware of what is happening on a moment-by-moment basis, and accepting things as they are.”
A friend described it as:
“being aware of the present“.
The easiest way I can find to describe it is when I’m taking Ziggy the dog for a walk in the morning. Its very easy to treat it as just another chore, and taking Ziggy along the same old routes every day can at times get a little boring – or does it?
Now when I walk Ziggy, I try and tune into my surroundings, the sounds of the birds overhead, the feel of cold morning air on my cheeks, the sight of the crocus buds poking through the grass.
As I sit here thinking about what I’m writing I’m hugging my warm coffee cup. Its very easy to practice mindfulness by tuning in and out of how the cup feels as it warms my hands.
Mindfulness is about enriching
the experience of the little things in life.
However lets not forget the practical elements that we can bring to our daily lives. When life gets hectic mindfulness can be helpful in our daily activities. Practice doing one thing at a time, focusing attention on those simple mundane tasks such as brushing your teeth and then use the same skills to focus on what someone is saying in a meeting at work, or when the kids are yelling.
Multi-tasking is still inevitable in today’s busy world, however it should become a a conscious choice to do this, keeping an awareness that perhaps you’re won’t be as “there” as you could be.
So practice mindfulness every day. Over time, it will be second nature – and if you’re still not sure? – here’s 5 reasons you should:
- Understand yourself better
- Be more compassionate (with yourself and others)
- Cope better with stressful or challenging situations
- Have a more relaxed attitude
- Improve your concentration and creativity
Looking at the world from a dog’s perspective.
Ziggy always takes in the sights, sounds and smells of his environment.
Related articles
- NHS recognition of mindfulness meditation is good for depression | Mia Hansson (guardian.co.uk)
- Struggle with Negative Thoughts? Try This (exhilaratedliving.wordpress.com)
- Mindfulness (barbarascovillelcsw.com)
6 Responses
Love this, definitely giving it a try, the number of times I can’t remember whether or not I’ve done something because I was on ‘auto-pilot’ or trying to do several things at once is ridiculous. From today I am going to be ‘mindful’ 🙂
Thanks for your comment Sue – its surprising what a difference it can make when we have an awareness of how we act.
I’m trying this out too as I’m always rushing about getting nowhere and never have enough hours in the day! I’m beginning to think that multi-tasking is BAD for you!
San – its a fair point multitasking can be a bad thing. Often with us not achieving what we set out to do, increasing frustration and stress. Sometimes we HAVE to but sometimes we multitask because its a habit.
Love it. It’s so true. I am a human robot who lives to accomplish my endless to do list and feel every night frustrated to have achieved so little. With better focu on each task I would achieve 10 time more. Mindful this is my new mantra.
Lolo – thank you for taking the time to comment – would love to hear how you go on.