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6 Mindfulness Exercises You Can Try Today

In this busy world of ours, the mind is constantly pulled from pillar to post, scattering our thoughts and emotions and leaving us feeling stressed, highly-strung and at times quite anxious.

Most of us don’t have five minutes to sit down and relax, let alone 30 minutes or more for a meditation session.

But it is essential for our wellbeing to take a few minutes each day to cultivate mental spaciousness and achieve a positive mind-body balance.

So if you are a busy bee like me, you can use these simple mindfulness exercises to empty your mind and find some much-needed calm amidst the madness of your hectic day.

I'm going to cover 6 exercises that take very little effort and can be done pretty much anywhere at anytime:

  • Mindful breathing
  • Mindful observation
  • Mindful awareness
  • Mindful listening
  • Mindful immersion
  • Mindful appreciation

Let's get started…

mindfulness-exercises

6 Mindfulness Exercises You Can Try Today

1.Mindful Breathing

This exercise can be done standing up or sitting down, and pretty much anywhere at any time. If you can sit down in the meditation (lotus) position, that's great, if not, no worries.

Either way, all you have to do is be still and focus on your breath for just one minute.

  1. Start by breathing in and out slowly. One breath cycle should last for approximately 6 seconds.
  2. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth, letting your breath flow effortlessly in and out of your body.
  3. Let go of your thoughts. Let go of things you have to do later today or pending projects that need your attention. Simply let thoughts rise and fall of their own accord and be at one with your breath.
  4. Purposefully watch your breath, focusing your sense of awareness on its pathway as it enters your body and fills you with life.
  5. Then watch with your awareness as it works work its way up and out of your mouth and its energy dissipates into the world.

If you are someone who thought they’d never be able to meditate, guess what? You are half way there already!

If you enjoyed one minute of this mind-calming exercise, why not try two or three?

2. Mindful Observation

This exercise is simple but incredibly powerful because it helps you notice and appreciate seemingly simple elements of your environment in a more profound way.

The exercise is designed to connect us with the beauty of the natural environment, something that is easily missed when we are rushing around in the car or hopping on and off trains on the way to work.

  1. Choose a natural object from within your immediate environment and focus on watching it for a minute or two. This could be a flower or an insect, or even the clouds or the moon.
  2. Don’t do anything except notice the thing you are looking at. Simply relax into watching for as long as your concentration allows.
  3. Look at this object as if you are seeing it for the first time.
  4. Visually explore every aspect of its formation, and allow yourself to be consumed by its presence.
  5. Allow yourself to connect with its energy and its purpose within the natural world.

3. Mindful Awareness

This exercise is designed to cultivate a heightened awareness and appreciation of simple daily tasks and the results they achieve.

Think of something that happens every day more than once; something you take for granted, like opening a door, for example.

At the very moment you touch the doorknob to open the door, stop for a moment and be mindful of where you are, how you feel in that moment and where the door will lead you.

Similarly, the moment you open your computer to start work, take a moment to appreciate the hands that enable this process and the brain that facilitates your understanding of how to use the computer.

These ‘touch point' cues don’t have to be physical ones.

For example: Each time you think a negative thought, you might choose to take a moment to stop, label the thought as unhelpful and release the negativity.

Or, perhaps each time you smell food, you take a moment to stop and appreciate how lucky you are to have good food to eat and share with your family and friends.

Choose a touch point that resonates with you today and, instead of going through your daily motions on autopilot, take occasional moments to stop and cultivate purposeful awareness of what you are doing and the blessings these actions brings to your life.

>> Get the bestselling book + 2 meditation mp3s

4. Mindful Listening

This exercise is designed to open your ears to sound in a non-judgmental way, and indeed to train your mind to be less swayed by the influence of past experiences and preconception.

So much of what we “feel” is influenced by past experience. For example, we may dislike a song because it reminds of us of a breakup or another period of life when things felt negative.

So the idea of this exercise is to listen to some music from a neutral standpoint, with a present awareness that is unhindered by preconception.

Select a piece of music you have never heard before. You may have something in your own collection that you have never listened to, or you might choose to turn the radio dial until something catches your ear.

  1. Close your eyes and put on your headphones.
  2. Try not to get drawn into judging the music by its genre, title or artist name before it has begun. Instead, ignore any labels and neutrally allow yourself to get lost in the journey of sound for the duration of the song.
  3. Allow yourself to explore every aspect of track. Even if the music isn’t to your liking at first, let go of your dislike and give your awareness full permission to climb inside the track and dance among the sound waves.
  4. Explore the song by listening to the dynamics of each instrument. Separate each sound in your mind and analyze each one by one.
  5. Hone in on the vocals: the sound of the voice, its range and tones. If there is more than one voice, separate them out as you did in step 4.

The idea is to listen intently, to become fully entwined with the composition without preconception or judgment of the genre, artist, lyrics or instrumentation. Don't think, hear.

5. Mindful Immersion

The intention of this exercise is to cultivate contentment in the moment and escape the persistent striving we find ourselves caught up in on a daily basis.

Rather than anxiously wanting to finish an everyday routine task in order to get on with doing something else, take that regular routine and fully experience it like never before.

For example: if you are cleaning your house, pay attention to every detail of the activity.

Rather than treat this as a regular chore, create an entirely new experience by noticing every aspect of your actions:

Feel and become the motion when sweeping the floor, sense the muscles you use when scrubbing the dishes, develop a more efficient way of wiping the windows clean.

The idea is to get creative and discover new experiences within a familiar routine task.

Instead of labouring through and constantly thinking about finishing the task, become aware of every step and fully immerse yourself in the progress. Take the activity beyond a routine by aligning yourself with it physically, mentally and spiritually.

Who knows, you might even enjoy the cleaning for once!

6. Mindful Appreciation

In this last exercise, all you have to do is notice 5 things in your day that usually go unappreciated.

These things can be objects or people; it’s up to you. Use a notepad to check off 5 by the end of the day.

The point of this exercise is to simply give thanks and appreciate the seemingly insignificant things in life, the things that support our existence but rarely get a second thought amidst our desire for bigger and better things.

For example: electricity powers your kettle, the postman delivers your mail, your clothes provide you warmth, your nose lets you smell the flowers in the park, your ears let you hear the birds in the tree by the bus stop, but…

  • Do you know how these things/processes came to exist, or how they really work?
  • Have you ever properly acknowledged how these things benefit your life and the lives of others?
  • Have you ever thought about what life might be like without these things?
  • Have you ever stopped to notice their finer, more intricate details?
  • Have you ever sat down and thought about the relationships between these things and how together they play an interconnected role in the functioning of the earth?

Once you have identified your 5 things, make it your duty to find out everything you can about their creation and purpose to truly appreciate the way in which they support your life.

Would you like to download these exercises in PDF format?

>> Click here to download a PDF version

Why Mindfulness Exercises?

The cultivation of moment-by-moment awareness of our surrounding environment is a practice that helps us better cope with the difficult thoughts and feelings that cause us stress and anxiety in everyday life.

With regular practice of mindfulness exercises, rather than being led on auto-pilot by emotions influenced by negative past experiences and fears of future occurrences, we harness the ability to root the mind in the present moment and deal with life’s challenges in a clear-minded, calm, assertive way.

In turn, we develop a fully conscious mind-set that frees us from the imprisonment of unhelpful, self-limiting thought patterns, and enables us to be fully present to focus on positive emotions that increase compassion and understanding in ourselves and others.

For more advanced mindfulness exercises, and two 30-minute meditation music mp3s to accompany your practice, you can download my book of the same name.

>> Click here to see what's in the book.

 

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Comments

  2. James Jensen says

    Mindful breathing has been a life-saver for me. When I’m at work and something stressful happens, it is my little escape hatch. I can take some of those deep and glorious breaths, making sure to breath in through my nose and out through my mouth. It has an instant calming effect. It doesn’t eliminate my problems, but it fortifies me enough to face them head on.

    Reply

  3. Annie Collyer says

    Great article. We need so much more mindfulness in the world to combat the upsets and limitations. I like your thought of just spending a few minutes with a flower! And taking the washing of dishes to be aware of how the water comes in, how it feels, look at how the light sparkles on the newly washed dish or glass, how my muscles work together to accomplish the task. Nice tip!

    Reply

    • Naresh Shah says

      Mindfulness on every act of our life will give us more encourangement and creating new ideas.

      Reply

    • Naresh Shah says

      Very good article and very helpful in every walk of life including but not limiting only workplace.

      Reply

  5. Grace J. Thomas, LCDC says

    Wonderful! I will be sharing this article with my adolescent group this afternoon. We have been discovering how to make personal peace in a chaotic world. My group of young adults have issues with addictions. Thank you for your article.

    Reply

  6. Shannon Sadler says

    Learning to pay attention to what I am paying attention to in each moment is slowly opening up a whole new way to experience life. This is possibly one of the most important things I’ve ever discovered in life.

    Reply

  9. Rick says

    All it takes is a choice. A choice to be free A choice to live the life we have inherited. To be part of what is around and within.

    Reply

  10. jadonnia b says

    Loved this! The exercises are easily adaptable and adoptable by an anywhere, anytime opportunity to find one’s ‘center’!

    Reply

  11. Laura says

    Nicely done! Excellent article. A great introduction to mindfulness or reminder, indeed. Doing these exercises can change one’s life for the (much) better!

    Reply

  12. Larry says

    I have found a handy mantra to repeat whenever some small irritation intrudes. “It doesn’t matter”. Or additionally, “It doesn’t matter, go fishing anyway”.

    Reply

    • Naresh Shah says

      It is very good for the person who want to achieve something in the life. Read, think and adopt in the life.

      Reply

  15. Pinkey says

    Mindfulness is the energy that helps us recognize the conditions of happiness that are already present in our lives. We don’t have to wait ten years to experience this happiness. It is present in every moment of our daily life.

    Reply

  16. Estelle says

    I read your article precisely because it was brief and concise, well done. Thank you.
    Making the ordinary extraordinary is a real blessing, so I’ll be more mindful typing this note, enjoying blooming indoor plants while the world outside waits with bated breath for Spring , and so much more.

    Reply

  18. Lalley says

    I have recently experienced something called a Transicent global Amenesia (TGA) event, since then I am coming to terms with it and have found that reading the article is a great help.
    I had enjoyed colouring for adults for some while and am keen to find new patterns to experiment with

    Reply

  19. Bob M says

    This was a really helpful article. I especially love the mindful appreciation section. I do spend lots of time being grateful for good things and find that it really helps when I have lots of anxiety but it was hard to learn to meditate.

    Reply

  20. Meditation Claremont says

    Wow! These 6 mindful exercises are amazing; many times I make plans to devote time to meditation but am not able to accomplish it. I like all these points since they are achievable with our work. I will follow them and hope it will get some good result this time for me.

    Reply

  21. Agnes says

    I have been reading writings about meditations and living in the “here and now”. Yours is one of the simple, precise and easy to apply exercises in our day to day living. Thank you!

    Reply

  22. Timeless says

    Everything we did in the past dictates our present. Everything we do in the present dictates our future. Therefore, we can dictate a better future by being more present in the present.

    Reply

  23. Patsy says

    I found this article on a facebook post for a clinic in my hometown. Love your thoughts on this and will be checking the library for your books. Thank you.

    Reply

  24. Kim Land says

    Hey Alfred,

    great article! I like how detailed you describe the different exercises. What I like to do is focusing on the nergy inside my body. I become aware of my whole body as one big energy field. And than I watch how the energy is in constant movement. It becomes either more or less intense.

    Shared your article. Keep up the good work!

    Reply

    • Andrew grenicko says

      Mindful breathing is helpful so you can take deep breathes so you can calm down when you are upset about something

      Reply

  25. Kim Land says

    Hey Alfred,

    that’s a great list! My favourite mindfulness exercise is becoming aware of the energy inside my own body. Than I notice if the frequency of my energy changes. After I do this for a while I feel very energetic and fresh. That’s why I like to start my day with this meditation.

    Shared your article 🙂

    Reply

  26. Stella Mary says

    Thank you for the helpful tips for all the busy bees. A very relevant post for this generation. We struggle to find some time for our own health and hence these mindfulness exercises are very helpful.

    Reply

  27. Han Mingqi says

    Learning to pay attention to what I’m paying attention to in every moment will slowly open up a new way of experiencing life. This is probably one of the most important things I’ve discovered in my life.This is a good article and people can benefit from it.

    Reply

  28. LiuChenXu says

    Thank you very much for the author’s interpretation, I understand the secret of reading, I feel moved, the meaning of reading is not only reading knowledge, but also more important is to experience the happiness, slowly grow, slowly progress, hone their confidence and willpower.

    Reply

  30. Aruna says

    Alfred Sir, thank you so much for relaxing and calming my mind. I really found myself smiling and feeling great after reading these exercises. And I found that one or two exercises I have done before even though I didn’t know it consciously. Once again thank you and I will make sure that I follow these

    Reply

  31. Kaz says

    I’m so happy I found this wonderful gift from you on the internet. I was feeling a little overwhelmed and after only reading these 6 mindful exercises has calmed me. I have printed your generous gift and I intend passing it onto a friend. Your thoughtfulness will surly return tenfold. Thank you

    Reply

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