You do not need to empty your mind of all thoughts to become mindful or meditate. Instead, you are truly paying attention by becoming aware, watching and observing the present moment. When you step into a more mindful mental pattern, you notice the feel of the sun on your face, the smell of the summer grass or the wind rustling the leaves. You are not dwelling on what happened in the past or fretting about what the future holds, you are fully present, alive and in the HERE AND NOW.
This can look different for you at certain points in your life. You are noticing if any muscles are tense, how you are feeling, what are your strengths and where do you need to refocus your energies. And holding this space without judgement.
The practice of meditation, mindfulness, embodied awareness or whatever you want to call it is to gain a deeper understanding of self. This does not mean judging, criticizing or feeling guilty. You might notice how you avoid addressing feelings that are uncomfortable or patterns that are repeating themselves. Pay particular attention to your emotions by watching how you respond (or maybe react) to different situations or people.
Diving deeper is what leads to truly accepting yourself. It may lead to old memories or hurts that you have buried to come up which have shaped your thinking. Addressing these situations is what opens the door to acknowledging what is missing or where things need to shift.
Your body holds onto all these old thoughts and what you say to yourself daily. And over time it builds. What would it be like to shift those thought patterns? How would it feel to have a positive outlook instead of a negative? How can you sit with yourself in the present moment and identify your needs?
Just as negativity builds, so does positivity. Mindfulness allows you to take back your power and shift your perspective. Building a practice can look different for everyone. Ideas include: Guided meditations, yoga, breathwork, journaling, walking in nature and playing or making music.
Shifting your perspectives allows the power to always rest in your hands.