5 Tips for Practicing Mindfulness
We all know that our days can get busy, and it can be very easy to get too caught up in the tasks at hand. Practicing mindfulness will help keep you from feeling like you’re just going through the motions. There are a variety of emotional, cognitive, interpersonal, professional, and practical benefits that can come from practicing mindfulness. We’ve outlined 5 great tips & practices below!
1. Engage in a breathing exercise
Breathing exercises are great for relaxing your body and extending your attention. Breathing exercises are easy to do even if you’re in a time crunch! This can consist of taking 5 slow deep breaths, or doing a longer breathing exercise if time permits!
2. Check in with your body
Make it a goal of yours to check in with your body 5 times throughout the day. What does your posture look like? How are you feeling externally? How are you feeling internally? Make note of these things, and do what you can to make them better.
3. Actively Listen
We’ve all been there where we’ve been hearing someone speak without actually listening to what they’re saying. When you actively listen, you make an effort to truly pay attention to the person who is speaking to you rather than just focusing on what you’re going to say yet or letting your mind wander elsewhere.
4. Take in your surroundings
Whenever you find yourself waiting in a line, instead of scrolling through your phone, look around and take in your surroundings! So often, we view our phones as a nice mental break, when in reality, they can be contributing to overstimulation and anxiety. Take a mental break by just being present!
5. Stretch when you wake up
Taking a few minutes to stretch in the morning can improve how you feel throughout the entire day! Take inventory of tight areas on your body. Try your best to keep your mind on the stretching rather than focusing on your to-do list on the day. This few minutes of mental and physical peace can help better prepare you for the day ahead!