How To Improve Mindfulness

How do you feel at the moment? Your awareness and appreciation for what is happening in your life right now are just a few things that mean you live mindfully. Training the mind to focus on what is happening in the moment is an important tool in living a happy and healthy life. 

Clarity and focus are the two mindfulness skills that you learn in mindfulness and meditation practice. It fosters your ability to live in the moment and, in the process, let go of the past worries. It is all about an expression of gratitude to the goodness you have in your life right now. 

And yet, mindful thinking is easier said than done. Distraction is all around us, and it's just a hard habit to break. Even while you are walking, traveling, or eating, your mind is usually thinking of something else. 

When it is a constant battle between what is happening now and what you are thinking, is it possible to practice mindfulness at all? How do you train the mind to live at present?

What Does It Mean To Live Mindfully?

As you walk through daily life, can you identify what is happening? Do you know how you feel? All these questions will make you think twice about what you are missing out in life. 

Every time you drown yourself in the pains of the past, you are missing out on a great opportunity to live in the moment. It is not just about missed opportunities. More importantly, it is about living a life that is full of negativity because you are too focused on the things and people that hurt you. 

Everyday mindfulness is a lifestyle. More than the practice of meditation, it is all about knowing what is happening now and reacting to it as it happens. When you practice mindful meditation, you are improving your sense of focus, recognizing the in the moment emotions and experiences. 

Even without undue effort, you are able to connect to your thoughts and feelings, allowing yourself to confidently decide on what to do. But the practice of mindfulness is not easy. But with a few simple techniques to follow, you can make anything happen. 

Tips To Living A Mindful Life

How do you enhance your awareness of what is happening at the moment? How can you tell if you are living life as it happens to you? Here are a few tips you can try to help you live a more mindful life:

Tip 1: Take the time to breathe

You can't help it when the demands of everyday life get to you. Sometimes, it can be overwhelming. But the secret to living a more mindful life is not to worry about everything and just let them happen as they do. 

Instead, stop and take a moment to breathe. The focus is to simply be mindful of how the air comes in and out of your body. Have you ever tried listening to your body as it breathes? You'd be surprised to know how the air comes in and out of your nostrils, causing the rise and fall motion on your belly. 

You might say that breathing is something that you already do every day of your life. But is it something that you are truly aware of? While you are at it, extend your knowledge and understanding of how your breathing works by making yourself more aware of what it is like to breathe. 

How do you breathe while waiting in line in the grocery or when you are stuck in the middle of traffic? Just one purposeful breath and it changes your life forever. It is one of the easiest ways to practice mindfulness, and it's one of the first things you can do.

Tip 2: Go out and see the world

While going on a trip might not be possible at this time, going out for a walk will have to do. Being one with nature is one of the best ways you can practice mindfulness. This time, make sure to walk with more awareness in your heart and a clear purpose in your mind too.

Explore the beauty of nature around you. Spend every step with an awareness of what is happening around. Pay careful attention to the pressure that your body feels as your feet take every step. 

Take note of how your toes and your legs propel you to move forward and see more. If you have the time, make walking a part of your meditative practice. Not only does it improve mindfulness, but it also helps you lose weight in the process. 

Tip 3: Find wonder in silence

Mindfulness meditation is best set in a quiet place. However, this might be a bit of a challenge for you, considering the noisy environment that you are used to. But then again, unless you learn to embrace the beauty of the quiet, you will never be able to see or feel what is really beautiful from the inside. 

Your life is nothing close to quiet. The traffic jam, the crying kids, busy co-workers, or the ping of a phone call or a message—these are the sounds you hear and listen to daily. Making all those disappear would make you feel like there is a void in your life. 

Take the time to explore the silence that the environment offers. The silence of nature is not truly quiet. You will still hear the birds' chirping, the rustling of the leaves, rain falling, and various animal sounds. 

And yet, mindfulness practice will make all those sounds emerge as if they were part of the quiet. It is through this that you will be able to explore the feelings of anxiousness and worry. You will learn to let go of the distractions and begin to practice a more mindful way of listening. 

What's Your Takeaway?

A mindfulness practice is essential in living a peaceful, more comfortable life. In order to fully enjoy it, you have to be prepared to let go of everything else that proves to be unimportant.