Time to Reflect on Mindfulness

There’s been a lot of talk about mindfulness in the past years. How to do it, how not to do it, how much to do it, what tools you need to do it—the list goes on.

For those of you who still find the term a bit blurry, here is what we will be defining mindfulness as: the act of paying attention to the present. This includes your own emotions and physical needs, and to the world around you to improve your mental wellbeing.

For many, the term “stuck in my own head” will sound very familiar. If this rings true for you then adding mindfulness practises into your day might help clear some of that fog. Becoming more mindful of the present moment helps us appreciate the world around us and gain a deeper understanding of ourselves. In the modern digital world, where work can be done from the palms of your hands, notifications ping and buzz around us and most news feels like bad news, we may be overlooking things that we need to live calmer, more content lives.

One of the key components of mindfulness is that it helps us to become more aware of the flow of thoughts and feelings we’re experiencing, showing us how easily we can get caught up in them in unhelpful ways. The next step is to take time to reflect and observe thought patterns. By developing this skill—and it is a skill—you will be able to better identify when something is escalating in your mind but not in the world around you.

“Where do I begin?”

Getting started with anything new is a challenge. Luckily, mindfulness is a free skill you can begin at any time. Here are three top tips to get started:

Make time for yourself
Finding time each day can feel like a battle at times, but mindfulness is a great addition to daily tasks like morning commutes or a brief walk at lunchtime. You don’t need hours to check in with yourself, just choose to be present and notice how things around you make you feel and the sensations of that moment.

Notice the small stuff
Rushing around we may forget to take note of the sensations we enjoy along the way. This could be the first sip of coffee in the morning, the smell of our favourite dinner cooking on the stove, or the sound of light rainfall from the comfort of bed at night.

Mix it up
If you are struggling to find things that stimulate you, it might be time to change things up. Walking a new way to your friend's house might mean you spot new street art you’ve never seen before, or even sitting in a different seat in the office will flip your perspective.

Mindfulness is a great way to calm yourself down—which is particularly important if you suffer from anxiety or are in a stressful time of your life. It’s not a cure-all to remove negative thoughts, it’s a tool to help balance the bad with good and what’s real. At first, it may feel like a waste of time (we’re speaking from experience) but with a bit of dedication, it becomes a way to release yourself from carrying around too much stress in your brain and body that doesn’t belong there.

Why is a gaming platform talking about mindfulness?

For us, being in tune with ourselves and our feelings is crucial to our work. It allows us to focus on the work we do each day, but it also helps us deal with issues such as climate change and historical wrongs. It allows us to refocus nervous energy into positive forward thinking in a way that can inspire younger generations to come. As guardians, you too can benefit from the practice when challenges arise in parenting, future planning, and your daily lives. Practising mindfulness will not only help make each day feel a little softer, but it will help to show the power of self-soothing and encourage people around you—even little ones—to take more time to process this crazy world we call home.

Tell us, do you make time for mindfulness?