Connect
August #b365 Tip: Be Present
Our August #b365 tip—be present—can help you savor the final weeks of summer and fill them with memorable, enriching experiences. This is important, because with August can come a sense of panic that we didn’t appreciate summer while it was here. Being present is a tool for experiencing moments more fully and really soaking up the rest of the season.
There’s only one problem: Living in the present moment isn’t easy. We have partners, kids, friends, and colleagues all vying for our attention. We have a constant distraction with us in the form of smart phones. We have appointments to attend and parties to plan and dinners to make. Even when we find time for the summer activities we enjoy, it can be hard to fully experience these moments because of the to-do list that’s lingering in the back of our minds.
There are many tools for cultivating presence, including turning off (or leaving behind) your phone during important conversations or events, avoiding multitasking, and blocking space on your calendar for uninterrupted time with loved ones or activities that inspire us. But our favorite tool for achieving greater presence is mindfulness.
Mindfulness Leads to Presence
When we talk about being mindful, we’re talking about bringing awareness to the present moment. One of the best ways to improve your ability to do this is through mindfulness meditation, a practice of continually bringing your attention back to a specific object—often the breath, sometimes a sensation or sound. If you’re like most people, you’ll be flooded with thoughts when you try to do this. Mindfulness meditation teaches you how to notice these thoughts (without judging them) and redirect your attention back.
“Mindfulness meditation is not about emptying the mind or stopping thoughts,” says Kimberly Carson, a health educator specializing in therapeutic yoga and meditation at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), and the co-founder of Mindful Yoga Works in Portland, Oregon. “It’s about becoming present with whatever is here. That takes practice. In the same way that you slowly build strength in order to hold a longer plank pose, you need to build strength over time to be able to stay present.”
Research shows it’s worth the effort. The research on mindfulness meditation is overwhelmingly positive, with studies demonstrating that a consistent practice can help with everything from anxiety and depression to low back pain and menopausal symptoms. And Harvard Business Review recently concluded that women, because of how much multitasking and worrying they do, can benefit from mindfulness more than men.
“Mindfulness helps us respond rather than react to stress by interfering with our habits of thought and emotion,” says Kimberly, who has been involved with mindfulness-based research for over 20 years, including studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University, and OHSU. “A lot of us carry around a baseline mode of functioning—for example, anger or anxiety, or judgmental thoughts—and we’re not even aware that we do it. Mindfulness practice gives us the tools of stabilized attention, which helps create awareness of our behind-the-scenes thoughts and emotions. Once we become aware of these habits of heart and mind, we have an opportunity to disengage from or even shift them so that they’re no longer clouding our ability to be in the present moment.”
How To Develop a Mindfulness Practice
Here are some tips for developing a mindfulness practice that can help you be present and make the most of the final month of summer.
Get comfortable.
Mindfulness meditation can be done in whatever position works for you, but traditionally, a seated posture is encouraged. Focus on having a neutral spine, and give yourself enough support under the hips so that you’re not sitting in a spine-flexed position. Close your eyes if that’s comfortable. It’s perfectly okay to keep your eyes open—just pick a fixed point and stare with a soft gaze. If it works for you, try having your palms up with your thumb and index finger slightly touching.
“There are esoteric explanations for having those fingers touching, but from a pragmatic standpoint, it is a proxy for attention,” says Kimberly. “If your attention wanders off and you get really lost in a thought, that thumb and index finger tend to drift apart. It can help set a certain tone to try holding them together.”
Focus on your breath.
The best way to start with mindfulness meditation is simply by focusing on your breath. Get in your seated posture and just concentrate on the natural in-and-out movement of your breathing. Inevitably, your mind will drift off. That’s perfectly normal.
“There’s nothing special about the breathing pattern or style,” says Kimberly. “With beginners, the focus is on building stability through bringing attention to the natural breath. The core intention is non-reactivity, so when you feel your attention wander off, rather than trying to judge or change your thoughts, just notice them and come back to the breath.”
Start with 10 minutes.
When you’re starting out with mindfulness meditation, it is important to commit to an ongoing practice. If knowing you only need 10 minutes makes it feel doable, start with 10. Kimberly recommends working up to 20 minutes—”The more you practice, the more benefit you get,” she says—but initially, commit to whatever you can do consistently.
If even 10 minutes feels hard, remember what’s at stake: “We don’t have time not to have a mindfulness practice,” says Kimberly. “This moment is the only one we are given—we are not guaranteed any others. We are a culture that is very successful at creating distraction. Mindfulness gives us the opportunity to be more present for the moments in our lives, but that requires commitment and discipline.”
Fit it in when you can.
Some people find that picking a consistent time of day (and place) is helpful for cultivating the habit, but don’t let that derail you. If you don’t get a chance to meditate on your cushion in the morning, catch 10 minutes in your bedroom before dinner.
“In this day and age, schedules are ridiculously complex,” says Kimberly. “A lot of people work full time (or full time plus!), they have kids, they need to make time for their partners and friends. There’s a lot to fit in. The most important thing is doing the practice regularly, not doing it at a specific time of day.”
Your Journey Begins
Mindfulness is a lifelong practice that can enhance your experience of the world. In recent studies, it has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety, improve focus and memory, and boost energy and mood. You won’t experience these benefits all at once, but the potential is inspiring.
“The potential of mindfulness is insight,” says Kimberly. “With insight, we start to see things we couldn’t see before about how we react to certain people and situations—even ourselves.”
To learn more about mindfulness meditation, Kimberly recommends two books by Jon Kabat-Zinn: Full Catastrophe Living and Wherever You Go There You Are. There are also many other books as well as free podcasts, apps, and guided meditations available online if you’re interested in deepening your practice.
Mindfulness can’t literally slow the clock on the remaining days of summer. However, developing a mindfulness-meditation practice can help slow down your mind so that you’re able to be present for the moments that matter.
Are you interested in cultivating a mindfulness practice to help you be more present? Let us know in the comments!
Our August #b365 tip—be present—can help you savor the final weeks of summer and fill them with memorable, enriching experiences. This is important, because with August can come a sense of panic that we didn’t appreciate summer while it was here. Being present is a tool for experiencing moments more fully and really soaking up the rest of the season.
There’s only one problem: Living in the present moment isn’t easy. We have partners, kids, friends, and colleagues all vying for our attention. We have a constant distraction with us in the form of smart phones. We have appointments to attend and parties to plan and dinners to make. Even when we find time for the summer activities we enjoy, it can be hard to fully experience these moments because of the to-do list that’s lingering in the back of our minds.
There are many tools for cultivating presence, including turning off (or leaving behind) your phone during important conversations or events, avoiding multitasking, and blocking space on your calendar for uninterrupted time with loved ones or activities that inspire us. But our favorite tool for achieving greater presence is mindfulness.
Mindfulness Leads to Presence
When we talk about being mindful, we’re talking about bringing awareness to the present moment. One of the best ways to improve your ability to do this is through mindfulness meditation, a practice of continually bringing your attention back to a specific object—often the breath, sometimes a sensation or sound. If you’re like most people, you’ll be flooded with thoughts when you try to do this. Mindfulness meditation teaches you how to notice these thoughts (without judging them) and redirect your attention back.
“Mindfulness meditation is not about emptying the mind or stopping thoughts,” says Kimberly Carson, a health educator specializing in therapeutic yoga and meditation at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), and the co-founder of Mindful Yoga Works in Portland, Oregon. “It’s about becoming present with whatever is here. That takes practice. In the same way that you slowly build strength in order to hold a longer plank pose, you need to build strength over time to be able to stay present.”
Research shows it’s worth the effort. The research on mindfulness meditation is overwhelmingly positive, with studies demonstrating that a consistent practice can help with everything from anxiety and depression to low back pain and menopausal symptoms. And Harvard Business Review recently concluded that women, because of how much multitasking and worrying they do, can benefit from mindfulness more than men.
“Mindfulness helps us respond rather than react to stress by interfering with our habits of thought and emotion,” says Kimberly, who has been involved with mindfulness-based research for over 20 years, including studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University, and OHSU. “A lot of us carry around a baseline mode of functioning—for example, anger or anxiety, or judgmental thoughts—and we’re not even aware that we do it. Mindfulness practice gives us the tools of stabilized attention, which helps create awareness of our behind-the-scenes thoughts and emotions. Once we become aware of these habits of heart and mind, we have an opportunity to disengage from or even shift them so that they’re no longer clouding our ability to be in the present moment.”
How To Develop a Mindfulness Practice
Here are some tips for developing a mindfulness practice that can help you be present and make the most of the final month of summer.
Get comfortable.
Mindfulness meditation can be done in whatever position works for you, but traditionally, a seated posture is encouraged. Focus on having a neutral spine, and give yourself enough support under the hips so that you’re not sitting in a spine-flexed position. Close your eyes if that’s comfortable. It’s perfectly okay to keep your eyes open—just pick a fixed point and stare with a soft gaze. If it works for you, try having your palms up with your thumb and index finger slightly touching.
“There are esoteric explanations for having those fingers touching, but from a pragmatic standpoint, it is a proxy for attention,” says Kimberly. “If your attention wanders off and you get really lost in a thought, that thumb and index finger tend to drift apart. It can help set a certain tone to try holding them together.”
Focus on your breath.
The best way to start with mindfulness meditation is simply by focusing on your breath. Get in your seated posture and just concentrate on the natural in-and-out movement of your breathing. Inevitably, your mind will drift off. That’s perfectly normal.
“There’s nothing special about the breathing pattern or style,” says Kimberly. “With beginners, the focus is on building stability through bringing attention to the natural breath. The core intention is non-reactivity, so when you feel your attention wander off, rather than trying to judge or change your thoughts, just notice them and come back to the breath.”
Start with 10 minutes.
When you’re starting out with mindfulness meditation, it is important to commit to an ongoing practice. If knowing you only need 10 minutes makes it feel doable, start with 10. Kimberly recommends working up to 20 minutes—”The more you practice, the more benefit you get,” she says—but initially, commit to whatever you can do consistently.
If even 10 minutes feels hard, remember what’s at stake: “We don’t have time not to have a mindfulness practice,” says Kimberly. “This moment is the only one we are given—we are not guaranteed any others. We are a culture that is very successful at creating distraction. Mindfulness gives us the opportunity to be more present for the moments in our lives, but that requires commitment and discipline.”
Fit it in when you can.
Some people find that picking a consistent time of day (and place) is helpful for cultivating the habit, but don’t let that derail you. If you don’t get a chance to meditate on your cushion in the morning, catch 10 minutes in your bedroom before dinner.
“In this day and age, schedules are ridiculously complex,” says Kimberly. “A lot of people work full time (or full time plus!), they have kids, they need to make time for their partners and friends. There’s a lot to fit in. The most important thing is doing the practice regularly, not doing it at a specific time of day.”
Your Journey Begins
Mindfulness is a lifelong practice that can enhance your experience of the world. In recent studies, it has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety, improve focus and memory, and boost energy and mood. You won’t experience these benefits all at once, but the potential is inspiring.
“The potential of mindfulness is insight,” says Kimberly. “With insight, we start to see things we couldn’t see before about how we react to certain people and situations—even ourselves.”
To learn more about mindfulness meditation, Kimberly recommends two books by Jon Kabat-Zinn: Full Catastrophe Living and Wherever You Go There You Are. There are also many other books as well as free podcasts, apps, and guided meditations available online if you’re interested in deepening your practice.
Mindfulness can’t literally slow the clock on the remaining days of summer. However, developing a mindfulness-meditation practice can help slow down your mind so that you’re able to be present for the moments that matter.
Are you interested in cultivating a mindfulness practice to help you be more present? Let us know in the comments!
