What is Mindfulness?
How to Become a More Positive Person
Do you remember those moments as a kid? Where you’d come home from a long day spent running around the neighborhood with friends?
Scraped knees and all, you trudge inside and collapse on the couch. You can feel your heartbeat in your feet and fingertips. And you notice how out of breath you were as your breathing starts to slow down.
You lie there and soak in the feeling of resting. You’re not thinking of yesterday or tomorrow or that thing that happened earlier.
Only how good it feels to be in your body. Or how the couch swallows you whole. Or the smell of the dinner your parents are making.
This is the feeling I think of when I think of mindfulness. The feeling of existing fully and completely in your body. No judgment or worry. Just existing in a moment.
But what does it actually mean to be mindful? How can we be mindful when there’s always something to distract us from the present?
Let’s explore exactly what mindfulness is and how to incorporate it into our daily lives.
What Mindfulness Means
Depending on who you ask, mindfulness can be many different things. But there is one common phrase that appears when it comes to defining it.
Nonjudgemental Observation
This is the practice of observing life as it is with no assumption or judgment on whether it’s ‘wrong’ or ‘right’. It’s about being aware of our feelings and reactions to our surroundings so that we can take control of them. This will help us not only conjure more positive thoughts but treat other people better as well.
Benefits of Mindfulness
Mindfulness helps us become more aware of our emotions and why we’re feeling them without judgment. By being aware of our emotions, and not labeling them wrong or right, we can better understand ourselves and control our reactions to them.
This also helps us be more empathetic. When we’re nonjudgemental of our emotions and can control them, we can become better listeners and communicators by extending that to people we interact with.
Mindfulness can also help us appreciate the novelty of our lives. By being completely in a moment, we can appreciate the small things that make up the world around us.
For example, you can practice mindfulness on a walk around your neighborhood. Take note of how you physically feel, the sensations you experience, and the thoughts that come and go.
Maybe you notice a pretty tree you didn’t notice before, or a dog and its owner who walk around the same time you do. Maybe you pass an old bookstore you hadn’t noticed before and think ‘I could read more’.
These moments are what make our lives unique. Even when they seem insignificant.
No one lives a life like yours.
5 Tips for Practicing Mindfulness
1. Be Aware of Your Breath
Focusing on your breathing not only helps you momentarily reset but it can also help you control your reactions in difficult situations.
For example, if someone tells you something that upsets you, you can take a moment to focus on how your body reacts and how it calms when you focus on your breathing. This reset can help you respond in a constructive and non-judgmental way helping you keep your cool and nurture the relationship between you and the other person.
2. Focus on Sensations
If you are feeling overwhelmed, take a moment to check in with your body. Pay attention to how your body reacts when you’re feeling stressed. Are your shoulders tense? Is your breathing shallow?
Now take a moment to focus on your body within your surroundings. What do you see, smell and hear?
You can focus on one of these sensations and try to tune out your surroundings.
This type of mindfulness grounds us and allows us to recenter before continuing in a stressful situation.
3. Reflect
As you can probably tell, mindfulness and self-awareness go hand in hand. And hindsight is always 20/20.
Sometimes we aren’t aware of our reactions or the effects they have on others.
When we reflect on our emotional moments and the feelings we felt or words we said, we can better understand ourselves and others. We can become more empathetic towards each other and foster more positive relationships.
4. Practice Active Listening
Instead of listening to respond, listen to understand. Having mindful conversations means becoming a better listener. Not only will this improve your own relationships but it will make for more positive interactions with everyone you meet.
5. Observe Your Thoughts But do Not Internalize Them.
Our own minds can be the number one source of negativity in our lives. The way we think and talk about ourselves matters.
However, you are not your thoughts.
Let your thoughts come and go without judgment about whether they are right or wrong.
And if you have negative thoughts, try to think of why you may think that way and replace the thought with a constructive and positive one.
Final Thoughts
Mindfulness provides a way for us to be more positive with ourselves and others. When we center ourselves in the present moment, we are able to observe situations more objectively and control our reactions. Mindfulness is a form of self-awareness and can help us live happier lives.
What do you do to stay in the present moment?
This post was originally published on plnted.com
