I want you to envision driving in your car to work one morning.
You receive a phone call from your spouse. You begin to argue, and the discussion quickly turns heated and confrontational.
After ten minutes of posturing back and forth, you hang up in frustration, tossing your phone on the seat beside you.
You arrive to work anxious, irritated, and emotionally charged.
As you walk through the office, your most annoying coworker begins berating you with their problems and issues, furthering your morning irritability.
After five minutes of listening to nonsense and chatter, you finally get to sit down and settle into your day.
But then – the emails start piling up.
One after another after another.
Your manager needs you on a conference call at 10a; customers complain about a faulty product, and your annoying coworker is back at it again this time via email.
At this point, you have had it!
You become irritable, and now feel as though your once-promising day is spinning out of control.
The question then becomes: What can you do about it?
WHAT IS MINDFULNESS?
Mindfulness is defined as “The practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis.”
The goal of mindfulness is relatively straightforward, yet often challenging, staying hyper-focused in the present moment and being keenly aware of what is going on around you, without becoming judgmental. This includes how you’re feeling externally (the five senses) and internally (thoughts and emotions.)
In essence, mindfulness is being in full awareness of your state of being and surroundings at the present moment.
Because of the non-stop distractions around us, namely our phones, social media, and computers, staying connected to the present moment can seem like an overwhelming obstacle.
And it can be.
But there are ways to increase your mindfulness and minimize distractions while reducing stress and anxiety levels.
EXAMPLES OF MINDFULNESS
Mindful Walking – A simple yet effective mindfulness exercise. You can walk down your street, around your house, or through a hiking trail. The key to mindful walking is to be fully aware of your surroundings and the internal state of being (thoughts + emotions) while taking in those surroundings.
Deep Breathing Techniques – As explained in this article, deep breathing has many benefits that help reduce anxiety and stress and keep us centered and focused. When you focus on your breath, you’re placing your full attention on each breath, and strengthening your mindfulness muscle.
Five Senses Exercise – This is a popular technique used by many therapists to help those struggling with obsessive thoughts and anxiety. Some call it the 5-4-3-2-1 exercise. You want to notice five things that you can see; four things you can feel, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, one thing you can taste.
Sitting Meditation – The traditional form of meditation – sitting meditation has been around for thousands of years. The key is to sit down with your eyes closed and focus on observing your thoughts instead of getting caught up in them.
The Body Scan – This is a fun and relaxing form of mindfulness. You will lie flat on your back with your legs and arms spread and palms facing up. You want to focus your awareness on each part of your body, from head to toe or toe to head. Notice any thoughts, emotions, or sensations associated with each part of your body.
HOW YOU CAN APPLY MINDFULNESS TO YOUR LIFE
Applying mindfulness to your life can be fun and rewarding.
There is practically an unlimited amount of mindfulness activities in which you participate.
Some of these activities can be as simple as basic breathing exercises, or complex as hour-long guided meditations.
You can choose standard therapeutic mindfulness techniques, such as grounding exercises.
Or can try things like hiking your favorite trail, shooting one hundred free throws in your front yard, or getting lost in a compelling novel.
All of these activities can cultivate a robust meditative form of mindfulness – some people refer to it as a flow state.
Here are some examples of mindfulness activities you can practice reasonably easily!
Now that we’ve gone over the basics with some examples of mindfulness activities and techniques, I’d like to dive a little deeper so you fully understand the benefits and how to obtain them.
I’m going to give you a breakdown of how you can simply and effectively add mindfulness to your daily life.
3 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF
WHERE DO I STRUGGLE THE MOST?
What area of your life are you currently struggling the most with anxiety?
This is an important and essential question to ask yourself because the answer will give you an idea of where you need to practice mindfulness more.
For me, it tends to be specific personalities that trigger my anger, which then triggers anxiety, which triggers more anger.
Not a pretty cycle.
After years of not fully understanding why I would lash out at people, I began to hold it in and cause myself all sorts of internal drama.
Neither approach was helpful nor healthy.
Realizing that difficult personalities trigger me was an area I struggle with, I began to focus my energy on being more mindful of those types of people.
I would observe my thoughts, emotions, and reactions and adjust them accordingly.
Making this change takes time, though.
So be easy yourself.
Mindfulness is a muscle that needs to be used often to enjoy its wide range of benefits.
WHAT FORM OF MINDFULNESS IS FOR ME?
There are hundreds of different forms of mindfulness, and because each of us is wired differently, certain types will work better for you than others.
Yes, staying present in the moment is the raw definition of mindfulness, but it can be expanded to include all sorts of activities that keep you in the moment.
You need to experiment with various forms to discover which have the most significant effect on you.
For example, I notice that anytime I hike in the forest and take time to listen to the sounds of animals, smell the trees, and observe the natural beauty, I increase my focus and become less anxious.
Reading is another biggie for me. I’m almost always put at ease after reading twenty or thirty pages of a compelling book.
Take out a notepad, list out different mindfulness activities, and keep notes of which work better in calming and focusing your attention.
HOW DO I MAKE MINDFULNESS A HABIT?
Habits are formed by repeating something over and over until it becomes a natural go-to tendency.
If you want to make mindfulness a habit, focus your attention on becoming more aware of everything you do.
You can even create simple reminders around your home.
I pin sticky notes everywhere saying, “Be mindful” or “Stay aware.”
You can also set reminders on your phone or computer.
Once you have repeated the act of mindfulness enough times, it will become ingrained in everything you do, and you won’t have to think about it, you’ll already be doing it.
IN REVIEW
Mindfulness is the act of hyper-awareness of the present moment.
Mindfulness can make a difference in your life because it creates a level of awareness that can lead to spotting unhealthy patterns and habits and replacing them with healthier ones.
There are hundreds of mindfulness techniques – do some research and experimentation to find which ones work best for you.
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