Staff Picks
A Mindfulness Cheat Sheet
04.19.16
What am I talking about?
Time, of course!
Working two jobs and trying to have a social life has taught me that time is precious. It is not something I want to be wasting away.
Even more importantly, the time I spend with people or alone, needs to be fully experienced, 100%.
This want to be fully aware of the moment as well as our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment is known as mindfulness.
Over the years, I’ve found a few resources to help me be more mindful:
Finding Flow: the Psychology of Engagement with Everyday Life
by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Flow is a term that Csikszentmihalyi coined referring to the feeling you get when you are completely absorbed in an activity, where nothing could distract you even if it tried. He outlines, the tasks and skill levels that create different feelings. He concludes that completing a hard task that requires a high skill level allows a person to reach that mental state of “flow”. Definitely worth a read!
The Power of Now: a Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
by Eckhart Tolle
This book takes a more zen like approach to mindfulness so for those of you who aren’t into meditation, this might not be the best book for you. However, for those of you who have considered meditation or have some kind of interest in it, this is the perfect book for beginners. Tolle provides exercises and examples on how to be more consciously present in the moment and how being more present can impact your everyday life.
Headspace
Headspace is a great app for anyone who is curious about trying out Mindfulness meditation. The app was created by a Buddhist ex-monk and focuses on teaching people how to meditate through meditations as part of a series or single set. Unfortunately, the app is subscription based past their 10-day trial period, however. Give it a try and see what you think!
Stop, Breathe, and Think
Stop, Breathe, and Think is a completely free meditation app. Immediately upon opening the app, it asks the question, “How are you?” Tapping on the question will then bring you to a meditation session that is tailored specifically to how you are feeling at that moment. Your answer can range anywhere from great to rough. It’s an interesting take on a meditation app that I’ve never seen before.
Moment
One of the great things about technology is that it enhances life and makes things easier, but it also means that we are connected all of the time. To fully be in the moment, it can be a good idea to disconnect from technology every once in a while. Moment is an app that can help you do that. While it doesn’t disconnect you from your phone, the app tracks how much time you spend on it.