It can be difficult to stay mindful amid the to-dos of day-to-day life. In fact, a study at Harvard found that people spend 46.9 percent of their waking hours thinking about something other than what they are doing. This kind of mindlessness is the norm, as the mind tends to spend its time focused on the past, the future, and trying out should have’s and what if’s. The study also found that allowing the brain to run on auto-pilot like this can make people unhappy. “A wandering mind is an unhappy mind,” the researchers said.
1. Waking Up
2. Making Your Bed
3. Brushing Your Teeth
4. Taking a Shower
6. Eating Breakfast
7. Driving to Work
8. Starting Your Computer
It takes a moment or two for your computer to wake up in the morning. Instead of impatiently waiting, close your eyes and do a body scan to discover where you might be holding tension. Bring your attention to one body part at a time and observe any sensations, sending breath into any areas of tension and tightness. You can do this in just a couple of minutes—your computer will be ready to go when you are.
9. Eating Lunch
Instead of eating at your desk or multi-tasking, take a time-out to eat lunch and follow the steps in #6.
10. Waiting in Line at the Grocery Store
Waiting in a checkout line is often a time to get annoyed, impatient, or reach for your phone. Next time you find yourself becoming annoyed at the cashier for moving too slow or mindlessly checking your email again for the 23rdtime in the day, use that extra moment to practice mindfulness instead of impatience. Close your eyes and take five deep breaths, then identify five new sounds you hadn’t heard before, then open your eyes and notice five new things around you that you hadn’t noticed before. By the time you’re finished, you’ll be that much closer to the finish line.
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