How to Use Meditation to Be More Mindful in Your Daily Life

"There are times where your natural tendency to push through is not helpful.”

The wise words of a neurofeedback specialist when I was frustrated by my inability to calm my mind during a training session. We were reviewing a program together where I could actually see what my brain did during a meditation session. Instead of my brain calming it was revving up.

His statement took be completely aback. “Wait,” I answered, “This is how I have always succeeded.”

As a high achiever, you are ambitious, goal-focused and driven to accomplish your tasks in the most efficient way possible. My trained friend helped me to understand that efficiency can take away from your ability to be present.

There is a balance, that high achieving entrepreneurs (including myself) often miss. The balance between:

• Work and Rest
• Striving and Abiding
• Pressing On and Letting Go

As much as you may want to make being more mindful and present a goal to achieve, the more you do this the more elusive it will become. Instead, realize mindfulness is the opposite of effort.

So, what does it really mean to be mindful - and how can you be more present in your daily life?

What is Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a state of awareness that comes from paying attention, on purpose, to the present moment.

Merriam-Webster defines it this way:

Mindfulness

1. The quality or state of being mindful.
2. The practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis, also: such a state of awareness

Rather than effort, being present and mindful is about learning to let go, and just “be.” Be in the present moment - not stewing in regret over something in the past or worrying over something in the future.

This is not easy to do in this fast-paced, heavily scheduled, you can do-it-all world. It is challenging to be mindful when your life is packed to the brim, and you are thinking of the next place you need to be.

Not only is there the societal pressure to have your own calendar packed, now if your kids don’t have schedules as full as yours – with elite sports teams that go year around, and personal trainers to make sure they don’t fall behind their classmates, they are somehow missing out too.

Use Meditation to Become More Mindful

Meditation can help you become more mindful. If you, like me, have tried to achieve being present, you will find your tenacity and ability to “push through” when things get tough is a strength than can also be a weakness.

As in my case - the harder I tried to “accomplish the goal” of meditating the worse my scores were.

It takes time. Several years ago, I began my own meditation practice by listening to Andy Puddicombe, a meditation and mindfulness expert and the voice of all things Headspace.

I started with the beginner series and a 10-minute guided meditation. The first few sessions didn’t go well as I found it nearly impossible to sit still in silence. After one or two minutes I was opening my eyes to check the time – am I done yet?

Not one to give up easily, I kept going. In time, I found the minutes went faster and I was able to keep with the routine until the helpful voice of Andy Puddicombe would let me know the session was complete.

Andy would say, how are you feeling right now? There were times where I didn’t feel any different.

However, as I continued the new habit, with a bit of wonder I began to find that more times than not, I felt better, calmer, and clearer-minded.

The Benefits of Mindfulness

When you practice mindfulness through meditation and other techniques it benefits your body and mind.

Meditation is often thought of as a way to reduce stress and improve well-being, but there are several other health benefits that come with getting into the habit.

Studies have shown it can help control anxiety, improve immune function, even slow disease progression. A 2013 study by the American Heart Association found that people who meditated had better heart health than those who didn’t meditate. It supports your heart by changing how you handle stress to lowering high blood pressure.

Meditators also had reduced levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) and an increase in telomerase, an enzyme that helps protect your chromosomes.

You Can Learn to Be Mindful Throughout Your Day

Meditating is now part of my Morning Successful Ritual and I look forward to it every day. When you close your eyes and allow yourself to be quiet and present with yourself for a few minutes it sets a positive tone for the day ahead.

The bigger challenge comes with incorporating mindfulness - being aware and present - throughout your day.

How many times do you start with a quiet time in the morning, but then find yourself in the frenzy of regular activity that comes with the responsibilities of day-to-day life? Your mind begins to race – rather than being present you find yourself thinking about the next thing on your to-do list.

When the world these days is one of frenetic activity and high stress, and it takes real intention to not live your life that way.

But you have a choice here, my friend. You can choose to say no a frenetic pace that erases your ability to be present. You can also choose to not get caught up in the frenzy of others –

• It’s their frenzy and doesn’t have to be yours.
• It’s their attitude and doesn’t need to become yours.
• It’s their bad day and doesn’t need to become yours.

How to Meditate with Your Eyes Open

One of the ways to carry your ability to be present throughout the day is to incorporate mindful activities. Activities where your sole purpose is to be present in whatever it is you are doing – like meditating with your eyes open!

At our Leadership Mastermind retreat last Fall, one of the afternoons I took a group of entrepreneurs on a meditation walk. On an easy hike in the vibrant hills of Scottsdale, Arizona, it was a wonderful time to be present and experience the moment.

If you would like to try a meditation walk, one helpful method is the five senses approach. Use the five senses of sight, touch, sound, smell, and taste to orient yourself to the present moment and appreciate the world around you at the same time.

1. What do you see? Look around as you walk and identify five objects that you see. If you have walked this path a hundred times in the past, try to look for something new you haven’t seen before. There’s a nest in that bush; that flower is just about ready to bloom; a sweet little girl just passed by; the sky is an amazing blue today; that tree must be over 100 years old.
2. What do you feel? As you walk, notice four things that you feel such as the breeze on your face; the warmth of the sun; the sensation of your clothes on your skin; your feet hitting the ground with each step.
3. What do you hear? You will likely be amazed at the number of sounds there are when you really stop to listen. Identify and focus on one sound at a time until you come up with three.
4. What do you smell? Tune out your other senses and isolate the sense of smell. Breathe in through your nose and identify two things.
5. What do you taste? Finally, name one thing you can taste – like the mint of the gum you are chewing.

Since our meditation walk, one of my clients said she can better “stay in the moment.” She recognized when her mind wandered and thought about something I had said during our walk – “feel your fingers.” It helped her to remember and orient herself to the present.

The more you practice meditation and other techniques to be present in the moment, the easier it becomes. You will become aware more quickly when your mind has drifted and bring yourself back to the moment.

Being mindful in the moment is where you want to be – fully present, fully alive, enjoying the here and the now.