Mindfulness Challenge
Amongst everything that is happening in our crazy busy world, there is a quiet revolution underway. The mindfulness revolution.
Mindfulness is being discovered by Fortune 500 CEOs, Silicone valley entrepreneurs, students, artists, athletes, and people who are looking for a way to cope with the demands of a modern fast-paced lifestyle.
Mindfulness programmes are being taught at major universities all over the world as well as online in the form of self-paced courses and apps. Schools are also beginning to bring Mindfulness training programmes to their students as a way of teaching emotional intelligence.
If you feel that you are often running around in a million different directions and just need to catch your breath then Mindfulness may be for you.
Here are our top 5 reasons why we think Mindfulness would be of benefit to you.
🧘 Reduction in stress and anxiety - Through the practice of Mindfulness we can repeatedly access the part of our brain which is responsible for calming our nervous system. This allows us to experience life from a more grounded and centered perspective and provides us with a powerful tool to self-regulate our stress and anxiety.
🧘 Self-compassion - With mindfulness practice, we begin to develop the capacity for self-compassion, to not judge ourselves harshly. We learn the capacity to work in a more compassionate manner with our thoughts, emotions, and patterns of self-judgment.
🧘 Improved ability to work with conflict - Mindfulness teaches us the valuable habit of being able to pause. When triggered we develop the capacity of being able to pause and in that pause a possibility to respond differently arises. A possibility to begin to see a different perspective and to not react impulsively. We also naturally begin to develop more compassion for others.
🧘 Improved focus – Mindfulness teaches us to really focus our attention on the present moment. This is particularly helpful in a world so full of distraction. In time we find it easier to focus and concentrate and at the same time we develop the capacity to listen deeply and to be present for another human being as well as deepening our capacity to be present for our own lives.
🧘 To see things as they are - Mindfulness trains us to develop objectivity. We learn to accept things as they are without the need to judge things as either good or bad. We become less judgemental of people of situations giving us a more peaceful outlook and balanced view on life.
There are many online courses and apps teaching mindfulness and here are two we like - Sounds True and Headspace.
TODAY’S CHALLENGE
Set aside ten minutes daily. Find a quiet place to sit where you will be undisturbed.
Set a timer for ten minutes and begin by closing your eyes and taking a few deep breaths. Bring your attention to the sensation of the breath, inhalation, and exhalation. It is quite natural for the mind to wander and for thoughts to occur, no problem just bring your awareness back to the breath, focus on the sensation of the breath. It might be tingling at the nostrils or the rising and falling of the chest. The mind will wander, and without any judgment, begin again by focusing on the breath. These are the fundamentals of practicing mindfulness. In time begin to incrementally increase the time you spend daily on your mindfulness practice.