Mindfulness Practices for a Fast-Paced World

Mindfulness practices can help manage stress and anxiety while simultaneously improving focus and productivity.

Basic mindfulness meditation entails sitting quietly and concentrating on either your natural breathing or silent repetition of a word or mantra that comes to you naturally. When thoughts or emotions surface, simply acknowledge them before returning your attention back to breathing.

1. Take a Deep Breath

Mindfulness involves paying attention to the present moment: your breath, body sensations, thoughts and emotions as they occur. Psychologists have found that practicing mindfulness can help regulate feelings and reduce stress and anxiety levels.

Deep breathing is one of the simplest mindfulness exercises and helps restore normal breathing patterns that may have become disrupted due to stress and anxiety.

Mindfulness sessions typically begin with a check-in, where participants report on their physical and emotional states. Sharing this information can be especially helpful when practicing long-term mindfulness techniques in group settings. Many apps and online programs provide guided mindfulness exercises of various lengths – start off slowly by starting with 1-minute meditations before increasing duration as your comfort grows.

2. Pay Attention

Mindfulness is the practice of fully being present in each moment, even if that means simply paying attention to your breath. When your thoughts wander off track or start to judge yourself harshly, gently bring your focus back onto what’s happening right then and there. Mindful practice aims at developing attention regulation techniques which can reduce negative impacts associated with stress on body and emotions.

Formal mindfulness practices such as meditating, yoga or walking around your neighborhood are among the more formal approaches. But you can become more mindful by playing piano, juggling or walking while paying close attention to experience – such as breathing — in whatever form. Remember, being mindful requires deliberate and consistent efforts on your part.

3. Be Present

Part of mindfulness involves becoming fully present during daily tasks, like washing dishes. That means paying attention to each touch with soapy water on your hands when doing dishes, or the vibrations from the vacuum cleaner as you sweep, or the sensations felt while eating each bite of food.

Mindfulness can also help you stay calm when engaging with others. While it’s tempting to be distracted by your phone while speaking with a friend, mindfulness teaches us to focus on giving each of them our undivided attention and carefully listening.

Being mindful can even help reduce stress when facing stressful situations by decreasing activity in the amygdala – the area of your brain responsible for activating stress response mechanisms. Mindfulness practices teach how to recognize fear or stress triggers more easily so you can address them in an effective manner.

4. Let Go

Letting go is the act of distancing oneself from thoughts and emotions that no longer serve us, often through practice it becomes easier.

An effective mindfulness meditation involves sitting quietly and concentrating on either natural breathing or repeating silently a word or phrase known as a mantra (repetition without judgment) until any thoughts or sensations come into focus, then returning your focus on either breath or mantra as needed.

Another effective approach to stress is recognizing your emotions in the body and accepting that they are simply passing experiences. Remembering who you are goes far beyond these temporary emotions. While this may be difficult to do at times, especially if they have become embedded within a narrative surrounding stressors or trauma, it is vital that they explore those narratives as part of therapy or let them go when possible.

5. Be Kind

Mindfulness can not only assist with stress management, it can also improve overall happiness. Studies indicate that those who practice mindfulness tend to live longer, with lower risks for heart disease and depression. One way to increase happiness through practicing mindfulness is through performing acts of kindness such as helping out a friend in need or volunteering for an organization you care about – even something as simple as holding open the door for someone.

Be mindful to implement these habits on a consistent basis in order to reap the rewards of increased mindfulness. Learning this way of thinking and being takes time; be patient with yourself! Eventually, you’ll begin noticing changes in your everyday life; perhaps practicing mindfulness regularly makes it easier.