Mindless but Caring
The use of mindfulness or meditation exercises is frequently discussed by coaches due to all the goodness it provides. You don’t see endless articles written about the uselessness of these activities and probably already know a lot about the good effects because you have seen them described so many times. But many people still don’t feel excited enough to take part. This is like the common belief that drinking more water is good for you. No one disputes that fact but few of us hit that movable target of quenching goodness. We care but don’t do all the good things.
Mindless Participation
Let’s ignore the great by-products and redefine the activities. I have written about pairing mindfulness with exercise because they seem to fit into an efficient model and are more easily completed physically together. After completing my exercise routine, I plop down wherever I am and sit quietly to attempt some mindful thoughts. Sometimes I also stretch, stare a little or engage in some very lightweight dynamic poses to look as though I am still in the throes of my exercise routine. My mind is already tired due to the exercise and it’s simpler for me to persuade it to be calm. If I try and practice mindfulness during a workday, it is out of place because my brain is lighting up with thoughts about task completion.
Ignoring Mindfulness
It is good to examine why we are reluctant to doing what is good for us. Water is pretty easy to find, so it doesn’t make much sense not to drink more of it. Mindfulness just takes sitting quietly and trying not to think, so that seems right up our brain’s lazy-man-out mentality. Whether it is control that feeds our reluctance or lack of belief, it is good to try these kinds of activities before deciding that they don’t work. In the beginning of the practice of meditation, it is hard to quiet your mind and keep it from thinking thoughts. That is normal and may be the basis for why people think they can’t do it. So, try something different. Think mindfully about the thoughts that are entering your mind without your help when sitting quietly. If you don’t want to think about them, they will eventually be replaced by other random thoughts. We don’t know where most of that stuff comes from anyway, so we might as well really try and enjoy the show. At some point, you may wave those thoughts away also and be done with thinking enough to find that place where there is less thought.
Accidentally Mindful
Slipping into a good-for-you habit should be kept to yourself. That way, if you fail at doing it one day, there is no one except you to make some snide remark on your ability to commit. That would be a great thought to examine and ask for proof. Even worse, you may continue to find that the pundits were actually right in what they said. That stuff that is actually good for you makes you better. You can smile at yourself and still take part in the destruction of the wellness industry if you want. But what is more likely to happen is that you will question your old, hardened thoughts on why you are not a person who can participate in self-care. You remember that you were told that paying attention to yourself was selfish and have followed that creed a long time. Or, you might easily change your own mind. Close your eyes and take a breath. After that, take a drink of water.
Can you change your own beliefs? If you know that some things are really good for you to do, why don’t you do them? Are you controlling your health or your sickness?
