How Mindfulness Changed My Life

How mindful am I? This was a question I asked myself while I was meditating recently. I realized that I was not paying attention to all the little, mundane details of my day to day living. I realized I wasn\’t aware of how my thoughts were affecting other areas of my life.

When you bring mindfulness into your life, you can see how it can change everything. Mindfulness practice is really a way of life. When you\’re living this state of mind every day, you will notice that your thoughts are easier to handle. You also experience an optimism that comes from knowing you are doing things right. How much easier is it to organize your life? Or how about working?

Practicing mindfulness has led me to question some assumptions I\’ve held over the years. For example, I\’ve assumed that being late means I\’m in poor health. I\’ve also assumed that I need to drink coffee or tea and have something hot to start my day with. Mindfulness practices have taught me otherwise. Once I started meditating and living in the moment, I noticed how much I enjoyed being late or having a cup of tea.

The second area in which mindfulness has impacted my life is my relationships. For example, I\’m very thankful that I can spend time with my kids without feeling guilty about getting them home in time. Mindfulness practices changed my view of how I valued my relationships and how important they were to me. As a result, I feel more connected to them now than I ever did before.

One aspect of how my life has changed as a result of practicing mindfulness is how my emotions operate. Prior to beginning my mindfulness practice, I was very depressed and anxious most of the time. Once I began to focus on being happy and content with what I had, though, I could start to enjoy life again. I didn\’t think there was anything wrong with me; it was just that my thought processes were not clear. Through my daily practice of mindfulness, though, I\’ve learned how to shift my negative emotions into more positive ones.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of how practicing mindfulness changed my life is how it has impacted my career. While I\’ve always been self-employed, I never thought I was qualified to lead an organization or hold any leadership positions. However, as I began to practice mindfulness and develop a heightened awareness of how my thought processes and emotions were affecting my thought patterns and emotions, I became aware of how my emotions had led me to take many career decisions that were not in my best interest. By changing my way of thinking, I was able to turn my career around and lead my company in the way that was best for me.

As a result of how practicing mindfulness changed my life, I now have one small business and one very full schedule. Previously, I would get up, do whatever it was I had to do, get to work and then be exhausted at the end of the day. Now, I get up early and spend the morning and part of the afternoon either meditating or doing one of the many activities that calm and quiet my mind.

By changing how I thought and how I lived my life, I was able to gain a sense of control over my own actions and my own emotions. This increased my happiness, which in turn led to more success. By making a conscious decision to choose to change the things in my life that held me back, I was able to take control of them. I no longer live a chaotic life, and I am so grateful that I chose to practice mindfulness. Through my new awareness and ability to let go of old patterns, I feel as though my life is in complete balance.