According to the Oxford Dictionary, mindfulness is “a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment.” Sounds simple, right? Yes, mindfulness is absolutely achievable but it takes a significant amount of work to start practicing it regularly. But don’t fret- we’re here to help you out with some simple exercises to help you begin your mindfulness journey:
Set daily intentions
-Start with a set time to practice mindfulness each day. It could be in the morning, afternoon, or late into the night- whenever it works for you. Set a time and stick to it!
-Begin with easily achievable goals on your mindfulness journey. These goals can be as simple as staying off your phone to and from the bathroom and progress into fully accepting your flaws throughout a given day (high-level stuff here, but still achievable!).
Listen to your body
-Stretch and move around when your body is telling you it needs it. You are the only one who knows your body best, so listen to it!
Write something down everyday
-Physically writing throughout the day gives you a moment to clear your mind and focus on what is physically in front of you.
-Quick Tip: Physically writing down your daily intentions at the start of each day would help your mindfulness practices immensely.
Learn to rest
-Sometimes the best way to practice mindfulness is to simply not do anything. Don’t try so hard to rest, just let your body and mind slowly give into it. Easier said than done, but, the more you practice rest the easier it will undoubtedly become.
Interested in learning more? Listed below are two of our favorite podcasts that specialize in fitting mindfulness into everyday life:
The Mindful Minute: This podcast hosted by Meryl Arnett offers tips and tricks to practice mindfulness throughout the day and interviews with experts in the mindfulness field.
Meditation Minis: Chel Hamilton offers a plethora of short guided meditations ranging from five to twenty-five minutes in length on Meditation Minis. So yes, it is possible to fit mindfulness into your busy schedule!
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