Becoming Mindful
As busy professionals so focused on work, business, and careers, we risk not being mindful of the important transitions and beginnings that take place around us. But if we step back and view nature’s seasons from a larger perspective it is the cycle of nature that brings about new life and beginnings.
Think about it for a second, we are about one-third of the way into winter – a dead barren rustic period that does not support new plant life. The judgments of like or dislike that we place upon this season notwithstanding, from a mere perspective of nature, new plant life will not make its entrance during winter. If we look back one season to autumn, we will also see nature’s cycle is beginning to enter a period of decay. Leaves are falling, plants are dying, final crops are harvested, and daylight is beginning to wane. And then looking back one more season, there's summer. Long days, plenty of sunlight, and sufficient temperatures, all in support of the full growth season established by nature. That brings us back to spring in this birth-growth-decay-death cycle of nature. Spring marks a period of new beginnings and transitions. It is a season of new births.
Paying attention to the transitions of seasons can also serve to become more mindful. It doesn’t take a lot. We don’t have to become a Yogi, nor do we need to become an expert in transcendental meditation. We just need to become focused and intentional about that which is around us – becoming more present in the moment.
We can start the journey by noticing - when our mind is racing, when our thoughts are scattered, and when we are attempting to multi-task on top of multi-tasking. That can serve as a trigger or prompt for us to divert our attention from busy-ness to focus. It’s all about being intentional, being present in the moment, and doing so in a non-judgmental way. When truly in that moment, you cannot focus on the past (what you didn’t do earlier) or the future (what you need to do later). Your body is always and only in the present. How often do you give your mind the privilege of only being in the present? Even when you are on vacation, on the beach with your favorite beverage at your side, you are likely in the present moment only a portion of the time.
Another trigger or prompting mechanism can be the season itself. Rather than reacting to the racing mind, as you exist within the current season, be intentional about finding mindful moments in your daily encounter with nature. Taking time to be in the moment: of each new day offering one more minute of daylight through mid-June, taking in the crisp cold air, and watching flurries of snow flitter in the air are just a few examples of incorporating the practice of mindfulness with the season of winter.
In those moments you are simply being and trying not to be concerned with doing. That is an essential key of a mindfulness practice. Just being in that singular moment without judgment. The moment is just the moment, nothing more and nothing less. It’s a place that hopefully you will become familiar with soon. They don’t have to last for hours, merely moments. It’s place to give you space from the many other waking hours of your life that will be spent on doing.
But it is the mindful moments in between that will reenergize us to better tend to our business, work, and careers. These are not just aspirational platitudes. There are benefits to embracing the practice of mindfulness. Various studies have shown that mindfulness can positively impact creativity, enhance well-being, increase longevity, increase productivity, improve memory, reduce stress, and improve focus and attention. Not bad as outcomes, right? And I am not aware of a single study that shows the practice of mindfulness has a negative effect on physical health, mental health, or well-being.
If you have made it this far into this article in one sitting, now is the perfect time to try some mindfulness practices. Take a moment to look up and look around. What do you notice? What do you hear? What do you smell? How does the temperature feel? Is there a picture or painting to focus on? Or a window to gaze out of? What do you see? Letting all judgment go, just being in the moment. If your mind wanders a bit into that “thing,” that’s ok. Just acknowledge those thoughts and let them go and refocus to being in the moment – and don’t judge yourself. When you are ready on your own timing come back to the tasks at hand – reenergized, renewed, and refreshed.
Reflection Questions:
What new things or ideas do you want to birth in your personal season of spring?
What will you need during your personal season of summer for these things or ideas to fully develop?
During your personal season of autumn, what can you prune from your life that is not serving you well?
In your personal season of winter, what needs to metaphorically die or become dormant, so that better things may be birthed?