The Benefits of Mindfulness
Article by Saddhamala (Nancy Nicolazzo)
Mindfulness means paying deliberate attention to experiences without judgment. When we are aware of our physical sensations, our feelings, our minds, our thoughts and our emotions we are showing up for life rather than moving through life on "automatic pilot".
Have you ever noticed that days go by and you barely notice what you have done? We wake up, follow our morning routines, go to work, run errands, do the laundry, take care of the kids, cook, eat and go to sleep and because we are so used to all these actions, we can miss the nuances that come with them.
Mindfulness can change this. With mindfulness, giving undivided attention to what we do, we can focus on:
-what we do and how we do it as a way to help ourselves and other people-what we feel and how to make those feelings positive-what we say and how to use speech in a kind and truthful way-what we think and how the mind works and how to focus the mind on one thing at a time.
Rather than being swept away by thoughts and feelings, we can teach ourselves to calmly attend to all of our daily activities, with clarity and with kindness towards ourselves and towards others. When I think about the benefits of mindfulness, I realize that mindfulness can make the world a better place.
Mindfulness:
-calms the body-opens the heart-awakens the spirit-reduces stress-eases worry-promotes ease-fosters stability-develops wisdom-reveals the essence of situations-helps us to slow down and attend to each moment
Mindfulness opens us up to:
-giving and receiving love-thinking about things in an expansive way-being compassionate-being quiet-listening-speaking from the heart-being present to another point of view
There are also psychological and medical benefits when we practice mindfulness. Studies have proven that mindfulness boosts the immune system, improves memory, lowers blood pressure, and gives an overall feeling of well-being. Mindfulness is part of the mind/body connection and may reduce the need for! medicat ion - and it has no harmful side-effects.
Being mindful allows the "'ordinary to reveal itself as extraordinary". When we rush through our daily activities - our meetings, conversations, meals, time spent with people we care about, and mindlessly attend to our usual schedule, we miss out on what is extraordinary in what we think of as ordinary.
About the AuthorNancy is a twenty-year veteran of teaching, consulting and coaching. Assisting individuals and corporate professionals to find new skills to improve their professional and personal lives with skillfulness, compassion and mindfulness is the focus of Nancy's coaching.
Nancy leverages what she has learned as a mother, teacher and Buddhist minister to offer a unique, relevant and valuable perspective to the people she works with.
To learn more about mindfulness coaching, click here
http://mindfulworkshops.com
Ajahn Chah - Mindful Way
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