How to be mindful all the time?

Time is money. Today’s people are trying to save their time for better family relations, quality work performance, and spending it on self-care and hobbies to make life meaningful. But why do they need some extra effort to enjoy their lives? Have you ever thought? It’s because while they are doing it, they are not fully engaged in what they are doing. They are driven by a number of thoughts that are related to other aspects of their lives. If they focus on what they are doing fully, they will feel less pressure to put in extra effort to enjoy life and make it more meaningful. But how do I do it? It can be possible by practicing mindfulness.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is a state of mine that enables a person to accept their surroundings, life, and themselves regardless of judging them. It also allows the person to experience life as it is. People practicing mindfulness know very well how to use their time in the present moment and in the future. They do not react; instead, they respond with balance to the situation. They become much more farsighted when it comes to understanding any situation. Mindfulness allows the person to change their destructive habits and maladaptive behavior into healthier ones as they become more aware of their thoughts, emotions, and actions without being reactive to them.

Also Read: What is Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy?

How does mindfulness help in utilizing time?

People are worried about their past or future, what others think of them, their fear of making mistakes, and seeking approval from their loved ones. Also, because people now live in nuclear families, they have lots of family responsibilities while they are working, so they have to do more than one thing at a time. This makes them realize that they are not able to focus and give their 100 to either work, family, or themselves.

When people practice mindfulness, they become capable of doing their work more efficiently than before, as they are aware of their own inner state and surroundings. That’s how mindfulness enables a person to use time more usefully.

Also Read: Connection Between Mental Health and Diet: Mindful Nourishment

7 Basic Principles of Mindfulness

1) Non-judgmental attitude:

non-judgmental attitude refers to experiencing the situation and being aware of it, but not labeling it as good or bad. It is just about an experience, thought, or action to which the person has to respond without tagging it. It’s like perceiving a glass as glass in terms of its size, color, and cost.

2) Spontaneity:

In mindfulness, people have to not drive or strive for perfection or outcome. They have to remain in the process, and while they are in the process, they learn how to accept the situation. While they are in the process, they develop insight to accept the situation. At first, it can be like walking without directivity. Gradually, people realize that they are moving ahead as time increases.

3) Patients:

A mindful person has to first face their inner struggle, suffering, insecurities, and fear. Then you have to develop patience to respond with far-sighted vision. While they unravel their inner conflict, they develop patience to deal with their surroundings, as once people know who they are, it becomes easy to deal with the world. Just stay patient with the process of learning.

4) Acceptance:

Life is beautiful when people are ready to accept it as it is. Acceptance of change and learning is very necessary while a person is practicing mindfulness. Acceptance allows the person to target all the possibilities while time and self are unfolding with them.

5) Letting go:

A person has to focus all their energy on the present moment, as that’s how they can fully engage in the present moment. To do so, a person has to let go of their worries, anxieties, and insecurities.

Also Read: How Is AI Helping In Mindfulness?

6) Faith:

Faith is very important, as our belief system plays an important role in achieving what we desire. A leap of faith is very important in the process of mindfulness, which is about being completely surrendered to the desire. To do so, a person has to overcome all their worries by developing faith in the process and in themselves.

7) Be a learner:

A person has to function with the mindset of a learner or beginner in the field. They have to be more observant of their thoughts, actions, and experiences to learn more from the process of mindfulness. With their mental readiness, people learn more in the process and move ahead to have a better life than before.

Why is breathing used in mindfulness?

Deep breathing by the diaphragm allows the mind to realize endorphins that promote a sense of relaxation and decrease stress and anxiety. It also reduces a person’s fatigue as their body becomes relaxed. One more important reason why breathing is used is because people can’t control their minds. People can control their emotions by being emotional. So for focusing the mind, what they require is to use any other medium to shift their attention from the mind to control the mind.

Activities to enhance mindfulness all the time:

1)Mindful eating:

How people eat and what they think while they are eating affects their mind and energy. Hence, mindful eating is the technique to receive positive energy from food, and this energy gets processed by the body and helps the person to be more relaxed. A mindful eater has to follow a few simple steps: they should not indulge in any conversation, gadgets, or TV while they are eating (the single task of eating). Feel the texture, aroma, and taste of the food while eating. Chew each other by with full involvement of the senses. If they find it hard to focus while eating, they can make a simple change in their eating habits to enhance their attention while eating. Such as eating more less dominant hand or Change in the meal course.

2) Body scanning:

Most of the time, when people are high on emotions or impulses, they generally do not focus on their body and go with the flow of energy and later feel regret in their lives. Body scanning can be used in such moments when people are high on energy. In this process, people have to focus on their bodies when they are feeling emotionally high (anger, guilt, or irritation). Such as when they are feeling angry on which part of the body they feel this energy (mind, face, or feet’s). By doing this, they get disconnected from their present surroundings and channel their energy inward. In such situations, they can also do a brief scan of their entire body, such as their legs, hands, feet, and waist, to enhance their sense of self-awareness.

Also Read: All you need to know about mindfulness

3) Blindfold movement:

In this process, the person has to be blindfolded and simply experience any object by using any one sense modality. Through touch sensation, they can experience their surroundings, such as a table, cushion, or ball, and enhance their awareness of their thoughts and actions, or they can use their sense of smell to smell perfume or food to enhance their awareness.

4) Mindful walking:

Mindful walking can be used on a busy day as well. For this person, they have to be fully aware of their body while they walk. For example, depending on which body part they feel the pressure on while walking, how it feels while their leg is in the air, and being aware of each step while walking and breathing,.

5) Mindful breathing:

When a person is breathing, they have to be fully aware while inhaling or exhaling their breath. In more detail, a person can feel that the air seems hot or cold while they breathe, their eyes are open or closed, and their chest is expanding while they inhale and decompressing while they exhale.