Have you heard what mindfulness is? Psychologists say that 15 minutes of lucid thoughts every day can change your life. In today’s article, we’ll discuss how it works, what it takes to become a conscious person, and how to embed it into a current lifestyle.
What is Mindfulness about?
Anyone does not align with their thoughts. Wonder, how come? Remember the last time you paid attention to what happens inside you when thoughts are “silent”. Is there a true silence inside you or a storm of confusion and uncertainty?
Let's imagine that the room you are in represents your mind. Take a look around. First, we see the walls - these are the frames of our minds. Everything inside the room is our thoughts. But in addition to walls and things, there are empty spaces in the room that we do not pay attention to. They are your subconsciousness. It's the same inside your head, there are empty spaces that are not occupied by any thoughts. With the help of them, you can focus on the present moment, without fear or judgment. This is mindfulness, or in other words - "the ability to pay attention in an open-minded and in a certain way."
Mindfulness consists of focusing on the moment. During meditation, people close their eyes. For what? To concentrate and be aware of the moment. But this does not mean that you need to walk down the street with your eyes closed (on the contrary, you will harm yourself, because you can fall or be under the wheels of a car). Becoming involved in a given situation, you begin to more precisely understand what you are doing. And this is not like meditation, but it becomes part of your usual trip to the store or a walk in the park with friends. This is kind of the opposite of experiencing the past or thinking about the future.
What are the advantages of being mindful?
Before you learn the advantages of a conscious life, we invite you to understand: you are a conscious person or not. How to do it? Ask yourself these questions:
- Do I acknowledge my responsibility for everything I have done to date?
- Do I believe that the world can only be changed by starting with yourself?
- Is my glass of life half empty or full?
If all or most of the answers are positive, then you are a conscious person who also consciously perceives life. If the most answers are “no”, then you need to work on awareness. And this article will become your guide to the world of correct life perception of reality.
What are the benefits of a mindful life?
First, you become more confident in yourself. This is due to the fact that you understand what is your uniqueness, how you differ from others. Confidence helps you move towards your goals faster because you don't pay attention to others. This means that by becoming conscious, you can quickly achieve your desires and goals, which you have been trying to reach for so long.
Secondly, mindfulness helps to find a circle of like-minded people. They will always help, support, be on the same wavelength as you. Conscious people are not jealous because they are busy thinking about how to achieve their own results. Such a circle of friends always inspires and fills up with new positive emotions that can give energy for realization.
Being mindful means becoming a positive and satisfied person. No more laziness and sad thoughts that nothing will work out. You will become much more energetic and powerful, you will be able to realize all your value and the value of your desires. Now the outside world will be positively reflected in your soul. Mindfulness allows you to become who you always wanted to be but feared. You will hear your inner self, learn to hear your inner voice and intuition that will never let you down now. And all thanks to 15 minutes a day, no more and no less.
How to become a mindful person when you don’t feel like one?
If you feel constant irritation, anger, fatigue. If there are times when you cannot control yourself and constantly break down, then you need to learn to control your mind. So how do you do it?
- Exercise. Special mental practices will help you become more aware. You just need to tune yourself to them as a hobby, and not as a "hard labor". You don't need to force yourself, everything should be fun, like a game. Choose what you like best and then you will get the desired result!
- Have some “quiet time” in your life. For example, meditate. Quiet meditations increase the level of human energy, give a great impetus to the development of mentality, and help to keep calm for a long time.
- Sleep is a must! No matter how much you want to hang out until the morning or work constantly, remember: awareness is possible through healthy and proper sleep. When you sleep, your body replenishes all resources, including energy. And lack of sleep is a direct road to irritability. If you cannot sleep for a long time, then reconsider your diet. You may be drinking a lot of coffee or spending a lot of time on your phone before bed.
- Learn to notice little things. What it means: When you are overreacting to something, start noticing that emotion. Take it apart, step by step. For example, a taxi driver answered sharply and you called him a bad word in response. First, figure out: what did you feel at that moment, why did you react in this way, maybe you already experienced such emotion before and there were bad consequences. Once you learn to understand emotions, you may be less sensitive to them.
- Understand what distracts you. Once you know what is causing you to be distracted, interfering with concentration, and calming down, you will beat that. And the more facts you can remove, the better and better you can turn the situation to your advantage.
- Be sure to train! This means not only mental, for example, meditation, but also physical. When you’re tense, it’s a distraction, and anger literally builds up in your muscles. Exercise can get rid of negative emotions and help you become more aware.
- Drink water! Let this be your motto. Those who do not drink enough fluids, especially in the hot season, suffer from dehydration, feel tired and unnecessary. A normal water balance helps you realize your full value!
- Plan your life. It is impossible to become aware if there are no goals. Once you start planning, even in the short term, you will have good decision-making practice. The more you strive, the more mindful you will become.
But will 15 minutes be enough for practicing mindfulness?
Have you ever heard of fitness? Of course, everyone has heard of this workout. What if there is fitness for the mind?
People have recently begun to take an interest in mindfulness. This is very pleasing, because, based on the information above, it helps us move forward, develop, and concentrate on our emotions and life in general.
If you wash your face every day, you will have a clean face. If you brush your hair every day, it will be smooth and well-groomed. And if you devote at least 15 minutes a day to studying mindfulness, you can achieve incredible development in life.
We are already tired of the constant stream of information, ads, social networks, videos. We are zombified by all this and we lose the most important thing - ourselves. Therefore, it is so important to learn to focus on the present moment, get rid of the influence of TV and the Internet, and learn to live in the here and now. And the mindfulness approach will help to do this.
This practice was invented by a professor at the University of Massachusetts in 1979. He first began to use meditation practices for the purpose of honey. treatment. Now, of course, mindfulness is different from the original sources, but it remains the same effective means of developing attention. concentration, awareness.
In other words, mindfulness is a special mode of operation by which your mind learns to focus on the moment without an emotional reaction. Be aware without violent consequences.
By dedicating each day to mindfulness practices, you will:
- Learn to cope with emotional stress;
- Get rid of chronic stress;
- Improve sleep quality;
- Make smarter decisions;
- Relax and enjoy life;
- Get rid of depression.
You can gain awareness wherever you are. For example, while doing household chores or on the way to work. You just need to be attentive to what your mind is doing during these moments. Concentrate on what you are doing at the moment. This will allow you to live your life at full capacity.
What types of practices can you use?
Even if you have a lot of things to do and do every day, one of the advantages of practicing mindfulness is the ability to concentrate during these activities. There are no special or hard exercises to help you do this. Every action can bring mindfulness. Let's have a closer look:
- A cup of coffee (or other drink). Physically feel this cup/glass, examine it. Enjoy the taste of the drink, take your time, taste every sip. Feel the sensation after each sip.
- Taking a shower. Feel how the water envelops your body, how it sounds. Apply shower gel to your skin, feel its aroma and how you feel at that moment.
- Bed. Breathe in the fragrance as you change the sheets. Try to focus on every movement of your body at this moment. Pay special attention to this activity, do everything efficiently.
- Going on a road trip. This can be any of your directions: to work, to the store, and study, to visit, just a walk. Feel every breath of air. Feel every step of your feet. Pay attention to what kind of weather and nature surrounds you at the moment.
- Teeth cleaning. Feel the movement of the brush, concentrate on the teeth and the taste of the toothpaste. Don't get distracted by other thoughts, but pay attention to things like brushing your teeth and gums.
You get the point. These informal practices will allow you to train mindfulness and concentration. What else helps to train mindfully is breathing practice.
Get into a comfortable position and breathe calmly and evenly. You can do this while sitting or lying down, as long as it is comfortable. Close your eyes and place your hands on your stomach. Concentrate on your stomach, feel it rise as you inhale, and descend as you exhale. Don't analyze the breath, just concentrate.
Final thoughts
Our life is only in our hands and we ourselves are able to improve it. Set yourself up in a positive mood, do not react to the practice of mindfulness as something unachievable or weird. Practice on a regular basis to become mindful, and form a habit.
It does not require huge energy resources. It should be a pleasure, a thrill, as mindfulness can change your world significantly. Having become conscious, you can understand a lot, find the answers you have long been looking for, and even improve relationships with loved ones.