Wake Up to Mindfulness

We multi-task even while relaxing!

It takes a moment to wake up to mindfulness and become conscious. This is what mindfulness is: choosing to wake up!

Morning Mindfulness

Take a Sunday morning.

You might be drinking your second cup of tea while glancing through newspapers with the radio on. You’re also texting a family member, half listening to someone else in the room who is speaking to you and checking your emails.

Does this sound a familiar scene?

Wake up to Mindfulness!

Our minds and bodies are so used to working on auto-pilot and multi-tasking.

But try it now – wake up to mindfulness. Stop everything and convert all these auto-pilot experiences into conscious ones.

• Right now, focus on your posture.
• Notice your head, shoulders, spine, legs and feet.
• You can shift them all slightly to release the tension. This is tension that builds up without our noticing.
• Read these words slowly.
• Become aware of your breath – perhaps it feels like you are hardly breathing at all right now. Breathe more deeply.

Wake up Again and Again

You can wake up to mindfulness again and again throughout your day.

Every moment contains the possibility of your presence.

• Savour the tea you are drinking.
• Stop everything else to listen to the radio.
• Or switch off the radio to focus on what you’re reading.
• Suddenly you might become aware of just how busy you’ve actually been!
• Whatever you’re doing to relax right now, focus on that, and enjoy it.

How do you Remember to Wake up to Mindfulness?

The habits of a lifetime won’t change overnight.

So the best way to step out of auto-pilot behaviour is to schedule in some daily meditation practice.

Make some time to sit and focus on your posture, breath and thoughts.

This enables you to experience the feeling of peace and calm. You’re then more likely to respond to daily challenges with mindfulness instead of react on auto-pilot.

Make a Daily 10 Minutes:

• Before you leave for work – on waking up, before breakfast or before you leave the house
• If you commute you have a great opportunity to meditate while on the train or bus
• First thing on arriving home from work
• Last thing at night before bedtime

When in your day are you able to book yourself 10 minutes of time to meditate?

Make a commitment to yourself on this. You’ll then find it starts to become easier to wake up to mindfulness in many situations.

Yvette Jane – Mindfulness and Meditation Guide

This updated blog post was first published on 23/11/14

Day 3 of the 30 Day Blogging Challenge with Sarah Arrow