Introduction
From the moment you wake up, your mind is filled with today’s tasks. On the commuter train, you ruminate on yesterday’s failures, and during meetings, you think about other things like ‘what should I have for dinner?’ Even after returning home, you worry about work emails and cannot focus on the time with your family right in front of you.
Are you living days like this?
Our minds are constantly moving back and forth between the past and the future. ‘I should have said that back then,’ or ‘Will tomorrow’s presentation go well?’ While our minds are in other places like that, ‘this very moment’ slips through our fingers.
In this article, I will share with you, who live such busy days, how to create a small oasis in your mind. You don’t need any special tools or long periods of training. All you need is a little curiosity and just a small amount of time.
Many people have probably heard the word mindfulness. But most people stop at an understanding like, ‘Isn’t that meditation? Like Zen?’ By the time you finish reading this article, you will understand the essence of mindfulness and should have concrete methods in hand that you can practice starting today.
Welcome to an adventure of the mind.
The ‘Mental Problems of Modern People’ That Mindfulness Solves
The problems that can be solved by using mindfulness are wider than you might imagine.
First, stress and anxiety. Unreasonable demands from bosses, pushing and shoving on trains, and days chased by deadlines. Modern society is overflowing with events that create whirlpools of emotion in our minds. Mindfulness functions as a ‘mental detox’ that neatly organizes these swirling emotions.
Next, lack of concentration. Smartphone notifications, social media updates, incoming emails. Our attention is constantly being pulled from the outside. You might suddenly think, ‘What should I have for dinner?’ during a meeting. Even though you should be listening to important information, your mind is in a completely different place. When you practice mindfulness, you cultivate the power to focus your consciousness on ‘this very moment.’ You will be able to give your all to the work right in front of you.
And, the quality of interpersonal relationships. Are you playing with your smartphone while talking to a friend? Are you thinking about something else while saying ‘uh-huh’ to your partner? When you interact with people while your mind is not here, the other person will definitely feel it. They will think, ‘This person isn’t really listening to me.’ When you aim for mental stability through mindfulness, you gain the leeway to listen to what the other person has to say. Then, trust that ‘this person understands me’ will grow.
Furthermore, it is also effective for chronic fatigue. Even though your body shouldn’t be tired, why do you feel exhausted? That is because your mind is not resting. Just by going back and forth between regrets of the past and anxieties of the future, the mind consumes a vast amount of energy. Mindfulness reduces this wasteful energy consumption and brings true rest to the mind.
A peace as if you had a small Zen temple inside your mind. That is what someone who has mastered mindfulness gains.
The Essence of Mindfulness | Placing Consciousness in the ‘Here and Now’
Mindfulness, in a word, is ‘directing your consciousness to this very moment without judgment’.
The important part here is “without judgment.” We usually make automatic judgments about everything. “This is good,” “That is bad,” “I like this,” “I dislike that.” This automatic judgment is actually a major cause of disturbing our peace of mind.
For example, someone sitting next to you on the train is listening to loud music. Normally, you would judge it as “noisy, annoying, and lacking common sense,” and your frustration would grow. But from a mindfulness perspective, you first simply observe the fact that “there is a sound being heard.” You do not attach a “good or bad” label to it.
This is not the same as enduring something. It is not about suppressing emotions either. Rather, it is about observing even the emotions that well up within you, noting, “Right now, there is a feeling of frustration.” It is about having a perspective that views emotions objectively, rather than being swallowed by them.
It is often misunderstood as “becoming nothing,” but mindfulness is not about stopping thoughts. Thoughts will arise on their own. That is natural. The important thing is not to be dragged along by the thoughts that arise. View your thoughts like clouds and watch them drift away.
Another misunderstanding is the perception that it is a “relaxation technique.” It is true that you can often relax as a result. But the purpose is different. The purpose of mindfulness is “awareness.” What is happening in your body right now? What is happening in your mind? It is about being aware of those things. As a result of being aware, you are freed from automatic reactions, and choices are born.
When you feel anger, you might normally snap back reflexively. But if you can notice, “There is anger right now,” you can pause for a moment. That pause creates room to choose a completely different response. This is the power of mindfulness.
Practice Methods to Start Today | A Journey of the Mind Beginning with Breath
The practice of mindfulness is surprisingly simple.
The most basic method is to “focus your awareness on your breath.” Sit in a chair and straighten your back. It can be on the floor or on a train seat. Close your eyes or lower them slightly. Then, just observe your breathing.
The sensation of air entering through your nose. The sensation of your chest or stomach expanding. The sensation when you exhale. That is all. You do not need to try to control your breathing. You do not need to take deep breaths. Just feel the breath that is there right now.
When you try it, you will notice something immediately. Your awareness will fly off to another place in an instant. “Come to think of it, there was something I forgot to say in today’s meeting,” or “What was my schedule for tomorrow again?” Before you know it, you have forgotten about your breathing and are lost in thought.
This is not a failure. Rather, the fact that you noticed is a success. The very moment you realize, “Oh, my awareness has drifted,” you are practicing mindfulness. Then, gently return your awareness to your breath again. This repetition of “drifting away -> noticing -> returning” is the essence of mindfulness training.
At first, even one minute might feel like a long time. That is fine. Start with one minute a day. As you get used to it, extend it to three minutes, then five minutes.
There are other methods besides breathing. “Body scanning” is a method of focusing your awareness on each part of your body in turn. From the tips of your toes to the top of your head, observe “what kind of sensation is in this part right now.” Places that are tense, places that are warm, places where you feel nothing. Just observe.
“Mindful eating” is a method of focusing your awareness on your meal. With every bite, savor the color, aroma, texture, and taste of the food. You will be surprised at how unconsciously you usually eat.
You can also perform daily activities mindfully. When you brush your teeth, when you walk while feeling the sensation of your feet touching the ground, when you feel the sensation of shower water hitting your skin. You can weave mindfulness into your daily life without taking special time for it.
Changes Brought About by Mindfulness | What Happens to the Mind and Body
What changes when you continue mindfulness?
First, your reaction to stress changes. It doesn’t mean the causes of stress disappear. Your boss is still unreasonable, and the trains are still crowded. However, your reaction to the same situation changes. In situations where you would have previously lost your temper, you can now take a pause. You notice, ‘There is anger right now,’ and you can choose how to act without being controlled by that anger.
Concentration also improves. Mindfulness is the training of directing your attention and bringing it back when it wanders. By strengthening this muscle, your concentration during work clearly improves. Even if you get distracted, you become able to return to your task immediately.
Many people also find that their sleep quality improves. You no longer have those nights where you can’t sleep because you’re caught in a loop of overthinking. You notice, ‘I am thinking about things right now,’ and bring your awareness back to your breath. You become able to avoid getting swept up in a whirlpool of thoughts.
The term ’emotional control’ might not be entirely accurate. It’s not about controlling emotions, but changing your relationship with them. When you feel sadness, instead of suppressing it by telling yourself, ‘I shouldn’t be sad,’ you acknowledge, ‘There is sadness right now.’ By acknowledging it, you can remain present without drowning in that sadness.
Self-understanding also deepens. You begin to see how much you usually live on autopilot, the thought patterns you weren’t aware of, and your unconscious reactions. You might realize, ‘I always get angry in this pattern,’ or ‘I feel anxious when this situation happens.’ Once you have that awareness, you can change.
And surprisingly, creativity increases. When you create space in your mind, new ideas emerge. A mind that is constantly full of thoughts has no room for anything new. Mindfulness creates that space.
Scientifically, the effects of mindfulness are also backed by evidence. There are research results suggesting that it changes the structure of the brain. Reports indicate that after an 8-week mindfulness program, the amygdala, which is involved in stress response, shrank, while the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in decision-making and emotional regulation, thickened. Mental training physically changes the brain.
Tips for Maximizing Results | What Only Those Who Continue Will Gain
There are tips for truly experiencing the effects of mindfulness.
The most important thing is ‘to continue.’ It sounds obvious, but this is the biggest hurdle. Many people quit after one day, saying, ‘It doesn’t work.’ But it’s the same as strength training. You won’t build muscle by doing push-ups for just one day. By continuing a little bit every day, your mental muscles grow.
The trick to continuing is to ‘lower the hurdle.’ Don’t aim for 30 minutes of meditation from the start. One minute is fine. If even one minute is too long, three breaths are enough. Start with an amount that makes you think, ‘Is that it?’ It’s best to feel like it’s not quite enough. If you feel like you want more, you will naturally want to do more.
Deciding on a time and place is also effective. ‘One minute after brushing my teeth in the morning,’ or ‘Only during the first station interval on my commute.’ If you tie it to daily habits, it’s hard to forget. The idea is not to create a new habit, but to attach it to an existing one.
Letting go of perfectionism is also important. Don’t blame yourself by saying, ‘Today was full of distracting thoughts, this is no good.’ There are days with many distractions. That’s fine. The very moment you notice, ‘There are many distracting thoughts,’ mindfulness is already happening. Evaluating whether you did it ‘well’ or ‘poorly’ goes against the spirit of mindfulness.
Finding a partner is also effective. It’s easier to continue with someone else than by yourself. Join a mindfulness community or start with friends or family. Having a relationship where you can ask each other, ‘Did you do it today?’ makes it harder to slack off.
You can also use apps. There are many apps for guided meditation. Since you can practice just by following the audio, the initial hurdle is lowered. However, don’t rely too much on apps. Aim to eventually be able to do it on your own without guidance.
The time it takes to feel the effects varies from person to person. Some people feel changes in as little as 1 to 2 weeks. On average, many people feel clear effects after continuing for about 8 weeks. Don’t be impatient. Like growing a plant, keep watering it. Wait for the sprouts to appear.
Summary: 3 Actions to Start Today
Mindfulness is a technique to create space in your mind to feel ‘this very moment.’ It allows you to face yourself here and now, without being swayed by regrets of the past or anxieties about the future. You don’t need any special tools or long periods of training.
3 actions to start from today:
▼ When you wake up in the morning, focus on your breathing just 3 times while still in bed
Right after opening your eyes, before picking up your smartphone. The sensation of air entering through your nose, the sensation of it leaving. Just 3 times. This alone will change the start of your day.
▼ Savor just the first bite of your meal
The color, the aroma, the texture, the taste. You will realize how unconsciously you usually eat. You don’t need to eat every meal mindfully. Just the first bite is enough.
▼ Before going to sleep, focus on your breathing for just 1 minute
Once you are in bed, instead of reflecting on the events of the day, feel your breathing. If thoughts arise, notice that you are “thinking,” and return to your breathing again.
I would like you to try these three things for one week. Something will change. Even if nothing changes, you lose nothing. All you lose is a few minutes of time each day. The possibilities you can gain are peace of mind, concentration, better relationships, and above all, the sense of “living in the now.”
The adventure of the heart begins today.
📚 For those who want to learn more deeply about the content of this article
This article was written based on the “5-Minute Read Series ‘Mindfulness’ 3rd Edition.”
If you would like to learn more, you can read it on Kindle.
👉 Click here for the list of books by Gofun-yomi Koki
If this article was even a little helpful, supporting me with a Like❤️ and a follow will be an encouragement for me to write the next one.
#GofunyomiKoki #Mindfulness #Meditation #MentalHealth #StressRelief #Concentration #SelfImprovement #HabitFormation #MentalWellbeing #LivingInTheNow
