August/ 2019
This situation has a significant
impact on our ability to learn,
perform at work and generally
enjoy life. Mindfulness can help us
focus, feel better about ourselves and
others, improve memory and enable
us to achieve our goals – and the
best thing about it is that it’s free!
Mindfulness… it’s been the buzzword
in recent times but it’s not new and
it’s not a fad. Cultivating mindfulness
and incorporating it into your life will
have a broad impact on your personal
and professional life. Mindfulness
in its simplest definition is a mental
discipline that involves training our
attention – it supports our mind to
be more focused, clear and effective.
It doesn’t cost you a thing... no
memberships, no technology, no
special equipment, no extra time.
It’s a no brainer!
The cognitive skill of mindfulness
can help us:
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Improve focus, attention and
memory
Increase self-awareness and
emotional intelligence
Reduce the impact and
influence of stressful thoughts
and feelings
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Improve personal and
professional performance
Contribute to our physical
and mental wellbeing
Provide us the opportunity to
respond rather than react to
people and situations
Mindfulness is both a form of
meditation (formal practice) and
a way of living with awareness
(informal practice). Mindfulness
meditation can take place on a
chair or cushion. Punctuating our
day with mindful commas (a few
seconds or up to a minute) and full
stops (several minutes) is a great
way to integrate mindfulness into
our life and have a positive impact
on our day to day experiences.
Here’s some daily mindfulness tips
that you can incorporate into the
things you’re already doing:
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Bring your attention to your
breathing by observing five
mindful breaths. On average
we take 21,600 breaths per
day, when was the last time
you paid attention to just
five of them?
Really tune into the
conversation you are having
and listen with your full
attention. What do you notice?
THE INFORMAL
PRACTICE OF
MINDFULNESS
REFERS
TO BEING
ATTENTIVE AND
PRESENT TO
WHAT WE ARE
DOING IN DAILY
LIFE.
Notice changes in your
posture. Be aware of how
your body and mind feel
when you move from lying
down to sitting, to standing,
to walking.
Drink and eat something
mindfully. Take a moment to
tune into all of your senses.
Bring awareness to seeing
your food, smelling your
food, tasting your food,
chewing your food, and
swallowing your food.
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Women’s Network Magazine
55