Getting Started with Mindfulness (2024)

You have questions about mindfulness and meditation.
Mindful has the answers.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.

While mindfulness is something we all naturally possess, it’s more readily available to us when we practice on a daily basis.

Whenever you bring awareness to what you’re directly experiencing via your senses, or to your state of mind via your thoughts and emotions, you’re being mindful. And there’s growing research showing that when you train your brain to be mindful, you’re actually remodeling the physical structure of your brain.

The goal of mindfulness is to wake up to the inner workings of our mental, emotional, and physical processes.

What is meditation?

Meditation is exploring. It’s not a fixed destination. Your head doesn’t become vacuumed free of thought, utterly undistracted. It’s a special place where each and every moment is momentous. When we meditate we venture into the workings of our minds: our sensations (air blowing on our skin or a harsh smell wafting into the room), our emotions (love this, hate that, crave this, loathe that) and thoughts (wouldn’t it be weird to see an elephant playing a trumpet).

Mindfulness meditation asks us to suspend judgment and unleash our natural curiosity about the workings of the mind, approaching our experience with warmth and kindness, to ourselves and others.

How do I practice mindfulness and meditation?

Mindfulness is available to us in every moment, whether through meditations and body scans, or mindful moment practices like taking time to pause and breathe when the phone rings instead of rushing to answer it.

VIDEO: “YOU ARE NOT YOUR THOUGHTS”

Jon Kabat-Zinn, creator of the research-backed stress-reduction programMindfulness-Based Stress Reduction(MBSR), explains how mindfulness lights up parts of our brains that aren’t normally activated when we’re mindlessly running on autopilot.

“Mindfulness isawarenessthat arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally,” says Kabat-Zinn. “And then I sometimes add, in the service of self-understanding and wisdom.”

Read about Meditation & The Brain

The Basics of Mindfulness Practice

Mindfulness helpsus put some space between ourselves and our reactions, breaking down our conditioned responses.Here’s how to tune into mindfulnessthroughout the day:

1. Set aside some time.You don’t need a meditation cushion or bench, or any sort of special equipment to access your mindfulness skills—but you do need to set aside some time and space.
2. Observe the present moment as it is.The aim of mindfulness is not quieting the mind, or attempting to achieve a state of eternal calm. The goal is simple: we’re aiming to pay attention to the present moment, without judgment. Easier said than done, we know.
3. Let your judgments roll by.When we notice judgments arise during our practice, we can make a mental note of them, and let them pass.
4. Return to observing the present moment as it is.Our minds often get carried away in thought. That’s why mindfulness is the practice of returning, again and again, to the present moment.
5. Be kind to your wandering mind.Don’t judge yourself for whatever thoughts crop up, just practice recognizing when your mind has wandered off, and gently bring it back.

That’s the practice. It’s often been said that it’s very simple, but it’s not necessarily easy. The work is to just keep doing it. Results will accrue.

How to Meditate

This meditation focuses on the breath, not because there is anything special about it, but because the physical sensation of breathing is always there and you can use it as an anchor to the present moment. Throughout the practice you may find yourself caught up in thoughts, emotions, sounds—wherever your mind goes, simply come back again to the next breath. Even ifyou only come back once, that’s okay.

A Simple Meditation Practice

1. Sit comfortably.Find a spot that gives you a stable, solid, comfortable seat.
2. Notice what your legs are doing.If on a cushion, cross your legs comfortably in front of you. If on a chair, rest the bottoms of your feet on the floor.
3. Straighten your upper body—but don’t stiffen. Your spine has natural curvature. Let it be there.
4. Notice what your arms are doing.Situate your upper arms parallel to your upper body. Rest the palms of your hands on your legs wherever it feels most natural.
5. Soften your gaze.Drop your chin a little and let your gaze fall gently downward. It’s not necessary to close your eyes. You can simply let what appears before your eyes be there without focusing on it.
6. Feelyour breath.Bring your attention to the physical sensation of breathing: the air moving through your nose or mouth, the rising and falling of your belly, or your chest.
7. Notice whenyour mind wanders from your breath.Inevitably, your attention will leave the breath and wander to other places. Don’t worry. There’s no need to block or eliminate thinking. When you notice your mind wandering gently return your attention to the breath.
8. Be kind about your wandering mind.You may find your mind wandering constantly—that’s normal, too. Instead of wrestling with your thoughts, practice observing them without reacting. Just sit and pay attention. As hard as it is to maintain, that’s all there is. Come back to your breath over and over again, without judgment or expectation.
9. When you’re ready, gently lift your gaze(if your eyes are closed, open them). Take a moment and notice any sounds in the environment. Notice how your body feels right now. Notice your thoughts and emotions.
   

Mindful Practices for Every Day

As you spend time practicing mindfulness, you’ll probably find yourself feeling kinder, calmer, and more patient. These shifts in your experience are likely to generate changes in other parts of your life as well.

Mindfulness can help you become more playful, maximize your enjoyment of a long conversation with a friend over a cup of tea, then wind down for a relaxing night’s sleep. Try these 4 practices this week:

Meditation 101: Simple Guided Meditations

1. A Simple Breathing Meditation for Beginners

2. A Body Scan to Cultivate Mindfulness

3. A Simple Awareness of Breath Practice

4. A Compassion Meditation

5. A Guided Meditation for Easing into Sleep

6. AMeditation Practice for Anxiety

7. A Loving-KindnessMeditation for Deep Connection

Try this free sample of our How to Meditate Course: Making Mindfulness a Habit—with Dr. Elisha Goldstein.

5 Common Mindfulness Meditation Questions

1. Is there a wrong way to meditate? A right way to meditate?

People think they’re messing up when they’re meditating because of how busy the mind is. But getting lost in thought, noticing it, and returning to your chosen meditation object— breath, sound, body sensation, or something else—is how it’s done. That’s about it. If you’re doing that, you’re doing it right!

2. Are there more formal ways to take up mindfulness practice?

Mindfulness can be practiced solo, anytime, or with like-minded friends. But there are others ways, and many resources, to tap into.Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction,Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, and other mindfulness-based trainings are available across North America. We’ve organized a list of centershere.

Daily guided meditations are also available by smartphone app, or you can practice in person at a meditation center.Read more about the types of programs currently available.

3. Do I have to practice every day?

If you want to make mindfulness a part of your life, you’ll probably want to consider working with a meditation teacher or instructor. You can even do that online using a video chat format of some kind, but even then the same principles apply. Here are 4 questions to consider when looking for a meditation teacher: 1) Do you have good chemistry with them? 2) Are they open and accessible? 3) Do they have a deep understanding of the practice? 4) Could they regard you like a friend?

5. How do yoga and mindfulness work together?

What are the benefits of meditation?

Of course, when we meditate it doesn’t help to fixate on the benefits, but rather just to do the practice. That being said, there are plenty of benefits. Here are five reasons to practice mindfulness.

• Understand your pain. Pain is a fact of life, but it doesn’t have to rule you. Mindfulness can help you reshape your relationship with mental and physical pain.

• Connect better.Ever find yourself staring blankly at a friend, lover, child, and you’ve no idea what they’re saying? Mindfulness helps you give them your full attention.

• Lower stress.There’s lots of evidence these days that excess stress causes lots of illnesses and makes other illnesses worse. Mindfulness decreases stress.

• Focusyour mind.It can be frustrating to have our mind stray off what we’re doing and be pulled in six directions. Meditation hones our innate ability to focus.

• Reduce brain chatter.The nattering, chattering voice in our head seems never to leave us alone. Isn’t it time we gave it a little break?
  

Read about the Power of Your Breath

More Audio Mindfulness practices

Video: mindful movement practice

Why Practice Mindfulness?

Some of the most popular ideas about mindfulness are just plain wrong. When you begin to practice it, you may find the experience quite different than what you expected. There’s a good chance you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Mindful’s founding editor, Barry Boyce sets the record straight regarding these5 things people get wrong about mindfulness:

1. Mindfulness isn’t about “fixing” you
2. Mindfulness is not aboutstopping your thoughts
3. Mindfulness does not belong to a religion
4. Mindfulnessis not an escape from reality
5. Mindfulness is not a panacea

Mindfulness Is About More than Just Stress Reduction

Stress reduction is often an effect of mindfulness practice, but the ultimate goal isn’t meant to be stress reduction. The goal of mindfulness is to wake up to the inner workings of our mental, emotional, and physical processes.

Mindfulness trains your body to thrive:Athletes around the world use mindfulness to foster peak performance—fromuniversity basketball playerspracticingacceptance of negative thoughtsbefore games, toBMX champions learning to follow their breath, andbig-wave surfers transforming their fears. Seattle Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll, assisted by sports psychologistMichael Gervais, talks about coaching the “whole person.” As writer Hugh Delehanty illustrates, players learn a blend of mindfulness, which Gervais calls tactical breathing, and cognitive behavioral training to foster what he calls “full presence and conviction in the moment.”

Mindfulness boosts creativity:Whether it’swriting,drawing, orcoloring, they all have accompanying meditative practices. We can alsoapply mindfulness to the creative process.

Mindfulness strengthens neural connections:By training our brains in mindfulness and related practices, we can build new neural pathways and networks in the brain, boosting concentration, flexibility, and awareness.Well-being is a skillthat can be learned. Try this basic meditation to strengthen neural connections.

go deeper

Explore Mindful

Mindful has many resources to help you live a more mindful life and tap into the best of who you are:

• How to Meditate
• Guided Meditation
• Meditation for Anxiety
• Mindful Magazine Subscription
• Special Edition Guides
• Mindful Online Learning

Meditation Apps