Mindfulness teachers call this the “monkey mind.” Our minds are filled with monkeys, all jumping, chattering, and screeching to get our attention.

Practicing mindfulness can help tame these monkeys, and improve one’s mental clarity and focus. If you’ve met a person who remains calm in the midst of adversity and highly-stressful situations, chances are this person is exercising mindfulness regularly, and don’t we all want to be that kind of person?

Here’s a simple guide on how you can jumpstart a mindfulness practice.

What is Mindfulness?

It’s a state of being when your body and mind are in the same place at the same time, in the here and now, without carrying past and future worries.

To be mindful is to accept what you’re experiencing and feeling, without labelling it as “good” or “bad.”

For example, you worked hard on a presentation for your boss, fully believing the tiniest details are perfect to a tee. But the day of the presentation, your boss asks you to revise the slides.

The natural, knee-jerk reaction is to get majorly pissed. But with a mindful mind, you pause and become aware of your emotions. Why am I feeling pissed? Because I worked hard on this last week (past), and now I’m scared I won’t beat the deadline (future). I hate my boss! (judgment).

Focusing on the present helps us to:

1. Feel less depressed: as we often feel when we worry about the past.
2. Feel less anxious: as we often feel when we worry about the future.

By focusing on the present, it helps getting those negative thoughts at bay. Of course, this doesn’t happen overnight. With much practice, those negative thoughts can be transformed into positive and productive energy, which will benefit you not only at work, but in all aspects of your life.

Where did mindfulness come from?

With roots in Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism, mindfulness has been around for thousands of years.

But its popularity rose when American professor Jon Kabat-Zinn founded the Stress Reduction Clinic, and adapted Buddhist teachings to create the “Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program” in the 1970s.

In his book, Full Catastrophe Living (1990), Zabat-Kinn outlined the seven attitudes of mindfulness that one needs to adapt.

1. Non-Judging: Noticing when you’re being judgmental of yourself and others
2. Patience: Letting things unfold in their own time without rushing
3. Beginner’s Mind: Being receptive to new possibilities and realizing you don’t need to know all of the answers
4. Trust: Trusting in yourself and taking responsibility for your actions
5. Non-Striving: Not forcing certain results to happen and letting things happen in their own time
6. Acceptance: Accepting things as they are in the moment without denying or trying to change things
7. Letting Go: Being willing to let go of the things, people, or ideas that prevent you from living in the moment

Zabat-Kinn’s program was designed to help patients cope with stress, pain, and illness, using what he called “moment-to-moment-awareness.”

According to popular meditation app, Headspace, we train in this “moment-to-moment awareness” through meditation, allowing us to build the skill of mindfulness so that we can apply it to everyday life.

The difference between mindfulness and meditation

Some people interchange the two, but here’s how to distinguish them clearly. Meditation is the training ground for developing mindfulness.

As a beginner, you can start by meditating a few minutes each day, then gradually increasing as you develop this ability. There are plenty of apps that can help you. (READ: Top 5 Free Meditation Apps You Can Download)

Of course, mindfulness is not a panacea for all your problems. It’s not going to erase stressful and difficult situations. But what consistent mindfulness practice can do is to change the way we perceive these unpleasant circumstances.

As in the example above, you’re mindful that your emotion (crossed with the boss) is a result of panic, or the sense of losing control. And because you are aware, you’re not going to snap at your boss and mutter a sarcastic remark.

Aware of your feelings and the bigger picture, and centering yourself to the present, you have more choice in how to handle the moment. You can choose to react calmly, or even in anger, we can still be more thoughtful in how we respond.

By focusing in the present, you zero in on what needs to be done, which is to apply the revisions. A little stressed? That’s okay! As you know by now, a certain amount of stress drives us to accomplish things (READ: Breaking down stress before it breaks you). Before you know it, the task’s been finished, and your boss is thanking you for a job well done.

What was supposed to be a painful bind turned into a neutral or pleasant situation. Isn’t that a more refreshing way to approach life?

How can I be more mindful?

Now that you know what mindfulness is, what’s next? Besides practicing meditation every day, here’s how you can start becoming more mindful in your daily life, according to E-Mental Health Canada.

1. Participate fully
   Try to: Bring your full attention to what you’re doing, ex. “Let’s keep phones away from the dinner table so we can talk to each other.”
   Try not to: Do many things at the same time.
2. Reflect
   Try to: Observe your thoughts, emotions and body sensations with an open curiosity, ex. “My muscles are tense and I’m feeling annoyed.”
   Try not to: Judge the experience (as good, or bad or anything else), or act on your feelings right away.
3. Recognize
   Try to: Remind yourself that your thoughts, emotions and body sensations are just thoughts, emotions or sensations. These don’t always reflect the whole truth, and can change from moment to moment. Focus on what you are observing or feeling.
   Try not to: Turn your emotions and thoughts into facts. There is a big difference between thinking “I’m feeling unloved right now” and “Nobody loves me.” “I’m feeling overwhelmed, but I’ll probably feel better after a good sleep.”
4. Accept
   Try to: Accept what you’re experiencing, without judgment.
   Try not to: Judge your experience or think about your thoughts, feelings and body sensations as ‘good’, ‘bad’, ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. “I’m sad. My chest feels tight and I feel like crying.”
5. Re-focus
   Try to: Notice when your thoughts wander, then gently bring your awareness back to the present moment. Take a mindful pause.
   Try not to: Judge yourself harshly when this happens.
   My thoughts are wandering – let’s bring attention back to the person I’m talking with.
6. Be kind to yourself
   Try to: Respond to your thoughts, emotions and body sensations with a gentle and compassionate attitude towards yourself. “I’d be kind to a friend who felt this way. I’d tell her to take care of herself. I should be as kind to myself as I would to my friend.”
   Try not to: Criticize yourself for not being better.

Conclusion

Mindfulness will do so much good in your life. Not only will it improve your mental health, but also your overall health, including your immune system.

And if ever things go awry in your mindfulness journey, remember this quote from Jesus Jones: “Right here, right now, there is no other place I want to be.”

References:

https://www.headspace.com/mindfulness/mindfulness-101

https://theblissfulmind.com/mindfulness-basics/

https://www.ementalhealth.ca/