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Module: 6

Presenting Mindfulness into your Daily

Life

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Taking the step to make mindfulness a part of your daily life is a big one, and it is one that you have to be

committed to if you are going to make it work. As you have learned in the previous modules,

mindfulness requires daily work, application, and determination. You have to consciously and

consistently shift your focus and your attention back to your present moment, while making the time to

consciously be mindful about your environment.

Mindfulness is something of a workout for the mind that will be difficult at first, but that will become

easier as you get used to it. Today, you might struggle with maintaining your focus for 15 minutes, but in

the future, you won't even have to think about it to maintain your awareness for that long.

Unlike most exercise, mindfulness can be a part of your everyday life, can help you in everything you do,

and will stay with you in terms of benefits long after you stop for the day. In time, you will hopefully

learn to practice mindfulness throughout your entire day. In this module you will learn some of the

techniques behind creating that practice.

6.1 Switched on Mindfulness

6.2 A Set Time for Mindfulness

6.1 Switched on Mindfulness

True mindfulness requires consistent attention, focus, and gently redirecting your attention where

you want it to go without judging yourself. Switched on mindfulness is the simple concept of actively

working to be mindful, actively working to direct your attention, awareness, judgment, and emotions

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where you want them to go, and actively working to experience as much of the present moment as

you can.

Here's a good example. You're probably sitting at a computer or on your tablet while you read this.

How does the device feel under your fingers? Most of us type a great deal every day, and often we

pay absolutely no attention to the sensation of typing. How does the keyboard or tablet feel under

fingers, what does it feel like to type? Most of us couldn’t say without actually typing for a minute on

either device. Why? We're usually not being mindful of what we are doing when we are typing. And,

in this specific instance, that's okay, because in this case, you should be more focused on what you

are typing.

However, this same lack of attention applies to many things. People go through entire days in auto pilot,

barely stopping to really pay attention to anything. People eat through entire meals without really

tasting them, mindlessly consume entire boxes of popcorn at the theaters, put their pants on backwards

when rushing to work (rarely), forget their keys or their wallet, walk into things, push on doors that say

pull, and otherwise consistently miss out on factors of their life simply because they weren't paying

attention.

In switched on mindfulness, your primary goal is to stay focused, to stay out of your head, and to keep

your attention on what you are doing. As you have learned, this also means being proactive in ensuring

that you can be mindful. If you typically rush out the door, a mindful attitude would be to go to bed

sooner and wake up earlier so that you can have a more leisurely morning, plan, and not forget things.

Mindfulness requires a few specific attitudes and some of them are harder to practice than others:

Non-Judgment – Judging yourself is a form of emotional abuse directed at yourself. Most of us say

things to ourselves that we wouldn't ever accept from anyone else. It's important to recognize that you

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shouldn't accept it from yourself either. Self-criticism has no place in a healthy mind. If you make a

mistake, move on, you can correct it and go on with your life. If you do something embarrassing, you

care about it more than anyone else. It's important to consciously train your mind away from personal

and self-judgment by actively working to redirect your thoughts when you do judge yourself. If you have

a habit of self-judgment, this will take time. Is it more important than focusing your attention on the

present? Most people actually find that the more they focus in the present, the less they judge anyway.

Patience – Patience is a crucial part of mindfulness, and something that you will have to actively

practice. Most people think of patience as a quality that some people have and others don't. This is

just as harmful as equating intelligence to parameters that are set at birth. Just like with any other

part of your mind, you can focus on being patient, and on creating patience. Remember that

patience is more about how you react to having to wait rather than any lack of frustration or lack of

motivation when you have to wait. Remember that everything takes time and consciously remind

yourself throughout the day to be patient. Mindfulness itself requires a great deal of patience. Even

more importantly, when you are focused on the present, it is more difficult to be impatient.

A Learning Mindset – As someone who is starting mindfulness, you are a beginner. You probably

have a lot to learn and that's okay. While it can be easy to adopt an attitude of arrogance, or to

pretend that you don’t have to learn anything, this attitude strokes the ego but helps little else.

Mindfulness requires that you learn new things, that you change your entrenched habits, and

sometimes that you do things you have never done before. Getting real benefits from mindfulness

also requires patience and practice, and you will have to use both.

Acceptance – Being accepting means that you have to stop fighting the present moment, you have

to stop being defensive, you have to stop worrying about the future. Accept that things will happen

and for the most part, there is nothing you can do about them.

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While some people will practice mindfulness as a meditational practice of 10, 15, 20, or 45 minutes a

day, your main goal should not be meditation, but rather an active state of mindfulness. Meditation is

a powerful tool that can help you to be more mindful, and it can help you to reach the right mindset,

help you to calm down, and teach you how to focus your attention for the lengths of time that you

want to do so. However, on its own, without significant changes in your mindset during your waking

and active hours, you will not be mindful. That is the important gap that separates a meditation

practice from a mindful practice. Without integrating the practice of consciously directing your mind

where you want it to go, you cannot be mindful.

Mindful Walking

Mindful walking is a very good way to get started with integrating mindfulness into your everyday life.

Instead of using time while walking to think or to pay attention to nothing, begin focusing your attention

specifically on the present, on what you are doing, on your body and how it feels, and the steps you are

taking. You can then pay more attention to where you are going, how far you are going, what you are

seeing, the experience of being outside, and the many other elements of walking. Even if you are in a

parking lot, you can try practicing mindfulness deliberately while walking.

The biggest problem with integrating mindfulness into your everyday life is that you have to frequently

and consciously redirect your attention where it needs to go. You might be surprised at first by how

often your attention wanders, how often you allow yourself to creep back into focusing on your thoughts

or your worries, and how often you will go for very long spaces or periods of time without even realizing

that you aren't being mindful. This is okay, and these gaps should include the majority of your time at

first. Over time, they will shorten, and your actual mindful practice will gradually take up more and

more of your time.

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6.2 A Set Time for Mindfulness

Most habits are built around timelines and plans. The people who are most successful with creating

new habits create a schedule for those habits and make time for them at the same time every day.

For the same reason, it's important for you to decide on specific times of the day in which you will

practice your mindfulness no matter what. A great example is choosing a specific time of the day to

meditate, do yoga, or practice using mindfulness in an activity.

Good times include when you wake up, before you go to bed, during your lunch break, or shortly

after you get home. If you can, you can actually consider integrating something mindful into each of

these times.

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Morning

In earlier modules, you learned about ego depletion, or how your willpower actually goes down over the

course of the day. This is why many people who exercise consistently do so in the morning. You see

more morning runners than evening runners for a reason. It's easier to motivate yourself to go when

you haven't depleted your willpower. This is one of the reasons why it's recommended for almost

everyone to begin their day with mindfulness. Earlier in this course, you learned that starting your day

with your phone can actually increase your stress and anxiety for the entire day. Starting your day with

a simple meditation, or by taking time out to sit and reflect or focus on your breathing can help you to

create calm for the entire day.

If you are doing a mindful exercise like Yoga or Tai Chi, now is a great time to integrate it. However, you

should not do exercises like Yoga for at least 30 minutes after you wake up, to allow your muscles and

your spine time to decompress from sleeping. You can use the first 30 minutes to breathe, get a hot

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drink of tea or coffee, and mindfully focus on doing things like cleaning up your kitchen, making

breakfast, or laying out your outfit for the day.

A Two Minute Morning Check-in

Sit or lay on your bed, and relax, focus on your breathing and take your hands to your abdomen so

that you can feel the rise and fall of the chest. Focus on your breathing for a few seconds, and be

aware of your body's rhythm.

As you sit or lay on the bed, move your attention to where your body connects with the bed, and just

be aware of the pressure and the feel of the bed.

Evaluate your body by consciously moving your attention from the scalp down to the toes, paying

attention to pain, stiffness, tension, heaviness, relaxation, or any other sensation. How do you feel? Are

you warm? Cold?Anything in between?

Move your attention to your emotions. Pay attention to what you are feeling, without trying to influence

it, and without judgment. Are you sad, did you have a dream? How did it make you feel?

From there, consciously shift your attention to your mind. Are you thinking? Are you stressed? Are you

relaxed? Are you focused, or distracted by something? Remember, you're not here to judge, just to check

in, and to see where you are.

Shift your attention back to your body and move your attention back to the breath, allowing yourself to

follow the breath in and out for a few times.

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Take a moment to recognize the conscious choice of practicing mindfulness.

This quick practice will give you a good starting point for your day, because you can consciously

analyze your body, your emotions, and your mind to see where you are starting from. Its only

purpose is to help you to understand where you are at right now, in the present.

If you have the time, a morning meditation, exercise, or practice can give you numerous benefits for

the rest of the day, including increased energy, clarity, and can help to wake you up so that your

mind is ready to approach the rest of your day.

Afternoon

If you need it, a quick break for a mindfulness meditation or practice in the afternoon can be greatly

beneficial to your calm for the rest of the day. While there are many ways to approach this, you can

practice mindfulness without meditation. If you want, you can practice a quick body scan in a private

location or at your desk or other area where you work before you go to lunch.

You can also practice mindful eating. This is simply the process of focusing your attention on eating and

experiencing everything. This means savoring each individual taste, paying attention to every bite,

putting aside phones or reading material, and making your food your mindfulness practice.

How does this work? Food is something that is easy to concentrate on, and focusing on it allows you to

experience more of it. This will make it easier for you to tell when you're full, will allow you to enjoy

your meal more, and over time, could actually lead to you making better choices for your meals.

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Evening

Your evening practice might happen when you walk in the door, or it might be just before bed. The

choice is yours. Most people, especially men, find that taking 20 to 30 minutes to be alone, quiet, and to

destress can be hugely beneficial for the rest of the evening. Here, men and women differ substantially in

psychological needs. Michele Weiner-Davis, PhD, a therapist, even goes so far as to say that it is a hard

wired gendered trait. Women typically prefer to talk about stress to get rid of it, and men need time to

sit, think, and process, and both can benefit from taking at least 15 minutes when they finish work to

relax.

While there are few specific studies to back this up, it is something to consider. Taking time to relax and

unwind is beneficial. If you can sit in a quiet space and meditate, practice yoga, or do another mindful

practice for that time, you can get that relaxation, while practicing mindfulness.

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Before Bed – Practicing a meditation before bed can help to improve your sleep, help to relax you

before bed, and will help you to fall asleep more quickly. However, you don't necessarily have to

complete a full meditation. Many people find that being mindful while preparing the next day's

clothing, preparing lunch for the next day, or organizing things for the day, or writing out a journal,

can be just as relaxing as a full meditation. You can do either, or both, depending on your time and

your preference.