Folding in Mindfulness

10 Helpful Tips for Keeping a Focus on Mindfulness and Returning to Awareness Throughout Your Busy Day.

1. Periodically stop throughout the day and bring awareness to what you are currently doing.


2. If you find yourself stressed or stirred up, bring attention to your body and notice where you are holding the emotion. Is it in your stomach, shoulders, upper abdomen? What does it feel like? Tension? A hot ball? Bring attention to your breathing and notice if you are holding your breath or breathing shallowly.


3. How can you bring your awareness to eating mindfully? Bring attention to what you are eating. Slow down and really tasting your food. Do nothing but eat during meals.


4. Tune into your body when you are hungry. Ask yourself, "What do I need?" Are you feeling particularly low on energy? Would protein such as nuts, tuna, hummus or some lean meat help? Are you already energized? Would cooling, raw vegetables or a salad be a good choice?


5. Give yourself the gift of a break when you need one. Get up from your chair, walk out of your office, even out of the building for some fresh-air time or a good long walk especially if you are feeling overwhelmed. Bring your awareness to the experience-- the sunshine, the breeze, birds singing, etc.


6. Manage your time so you can enjoy your afternoons and weekends for refreshing self-care and activities you enjoy and want to do. During self-care and fun, remember to bring your awareness to the moment.


7. To recover from stressful or unpleasant events, sit with the feelings and pay attention to your body, how it feels and what it's trying to tell you. Ask yourself questions, "What is this? What's going on here?"


8. Check in with yourself after awkward moments. Without judgment, bring attention to typical patterns of reacting to discomfort. Observe and ask, "What is this?"


9. Bring awareness back to yourself when you find yourself angry. Ask yourself, "What's real here? What am I resisting or trying to control? What can I just accept as it is?"


10. As you interact with others-- co-workers, friends, family members-- bring your attention to:

• your emotions and how they might be getting in the way of understanding and really hearing the other person
• giving the other person the space to freely express her thoughts and needs
• recognizing and acknowledging the other person's emotions in order to validate their feelings and understand where they are coming from.

Just as the texture and flavor of waffles are improved by folding fluffy egg-whites into the batter, try gently folding mindfulness into your daily life and see what improvements you notice.