Lots of people are talking about mindfulness today. In general, folks are using the word mindful as a kind of synonymous for paying attention. The attendant on a flight I took recently reminded us to be mindful of the nearest emergency exit. And that’s a good place to start. Being aware of, or paying attention to, what’s happening around us.

But mindfulness is more than noticing what’s happening around us. Because while things are happening around us, we are having personal experiences too. There is always also something happening within us – physical sensations, thoughts, emotions.

The practice of mindfulness includes paying attention to our own personal experiences – the thoughts, the sensations, the emotions, and more – in a particular way.

Jon Kabat-Zinn, the developer and founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), defines mindfulness as “the awareness that arises from paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, moment-by-moment, and non-judgmentally.”

So, it’s not just paying attention. It’s cultivating an awareness of the attention we are placing on our experiences, and without judgement. To be non-judgmental, our practice must include a level of kindness and compassion toward our experiences.

The benefits of a mindfulness practice have been cited in many studies. For instance, mindfulness meditation may improve health and well-being by:

• decreasing anxiety and depression,

• improving immune function,

• protecting the brain from declines due to aging and stress,

• improving mental clarity and focus,

• improving heart-health,

• enhancing mental health treatments,

• slowing cellular aging,

• improving self-confidence and leadership,

• improving mood,

• and improving sleep.

One or more of these possibilities may be enough to pique your interest. But ultimately, you must try it for yourself to see if this practice can work for you.

I invite you to engage your life more fully, with awareness and compassion.