Be Mindful

Mindfulness, or keeping your awareness in the here and now, is important for mental health and elite performance. The key is to stay in the moment in the face of distraction, no matter how great that distraction may be.

Controlling your awareness and mind so you can direct it to what matters in the moment is integral for success in any discipline, be it music, sports, drama, or business. Yet we live in the age of distraction. Email, social media, text messages, and short videos all compete for our attention, not to mention the job we are supposed to be doing.

As you improve how you manage your mental space, try being mindful by increasing your awareness of what is happening in and around you. Merely register the data from your senses or thoughts with detachment and objectivity as pure facts— watching and observing without labelling, judging, interpreting, or analyzing.

What do you see?

What do you hear?

What do you smell?

What do you feel?

This technique involves being 100% present in the moment, with all your attention directed at the here and now.

I love doing this when I listen to a great piece of music. And at an art gallery: when faced with a masterpiece, I really can’t think about anything else. The natural environment always captures my attention.

Being mindful with loved ones is powerful. When in a conversation with a friend or family member, try being absolutely focused on what they’re saying, not allowing your mind to wander and not worrying about how you’re going to respond. Just listen and try to understand what they’re saying.

You can also practice mindful breathing. Close your eyes and start taking slow, deep breaths. Inhale deeply through your nose, hold for a moment, and then exhale slowly through your mouth. Concentrate fully on the sensation of your breath entering and leaving your body. Feel the rise and fall of your chest or the air moving in and out of your nostrils. If your mind starts to wander, gently bring your focus back to your breath without judgment. Acknowledge the distraction and return your attention to your breathing.

Sharpening your focus and living in the moment are great ways to dissipate stress. So much of our stress comes from thinking about the past or the future. When we stay in the present, we often realize that things are pretty good. 

Practice being right here, right now.

That’s it for this week! Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

Yours for health, wellbeing & peak performance - Dr. Greg