Sometimes, being mindful requires reminders or a change in approach to get out of one head space and into a more open-minded one. It’s not only about paying attention to everything.
However, it does mean being able to see things more clearly or purposefully. Here are five changes you can make to be more mindful.
1. Add Mediation to Your List of Your Daily Activities
You don’t have to go all Zen and talk to everyone about meditation. But you can gradually ease into it with a receptive mind and give it a try.
If you’ve previously not had success with it, you can buy a book or watch a YouTube video from a mediation-oriented channel and give yourself permission to explore the concept more.
There are guided mediations which are useful if you’re new to it. Here is a list of some of the better mediation channels on YouTube to give it a go.
2. Accepting That ‘This Too Shall Pass’
Being mindful is wonderful, but you can also get so stuck in a difficult life situation that it feels too challenging. Should this continue for too long, it can really mess up your clarity.
In this situation, to get back to a comfortable mental state, it’s important to remind yourself that most situations in life are temporary. Your life existed before, and it will exist after. Remember that ‘This too shall pass.” It’s a useful phrase to remember when you’re having trouble dealing with today.
3. Mix Up Your Patterns and Routines
Life can get boring if you keep doing the same thing. Even the most interesting life can become repetitive when not mixing it up! Use mindfulness to purposefully get out of autopilot mode every so often. This can take many forms. Try taking another route home from work or doing things in a different order than usual.
Go to a new park to walk the dog who’ll love exploring a new place even more than you will. Pick a different lunch item off the menu, or invite a new friend for a night out. Experiment with different patterns and alternative routines. You may discover that you prefer some of them to what you did previously.
4. Be Mindful About the Planet Through Consumables
Being mindful about the planet and the need to care more about it is a positive in people’s lives. It feels good to put bottles into the correct recycling bin instead of the trash bin. However, it’s even better to use a refillable water container that you carry around with you on walks to stay hydrated while avoiding using disposable water bottles.
Doing so also avoids the ever-present temptation of buying a soda instead of a healthy beverage. Seeking out plant-based packaging for the products you buy is also a good idea because they are biodegradable – they break down into fertilizer to provide healthier soil for plants to grow.
Similarly, the industrial compostable coffee pods from Gourmesso impress with this unique business strategy that attracts people who wish their coffee to be top-grade and its packaging biodegradable after consumption too.
5. Express Gratitude
Expressing gratitude for what you do have in your life is important because it gives you the proper perspective necessary to truly appreciate it. When you don’t appreciate what you have, it’s difficult to be happy. Being mindful is something you may choose to avoid because you don’t wish to see what’s there.
However, by being happy for what you do have – however much or little it may be – you can reengage with life. At that point, mindfulness is no longer scary or unpleasant. There are many different ways to be more mindful. Don’t be afraid to try several approaches to discover what works best for you.
