Try Mindful Meditation to Focus Your Energy and Build Concentration

Mindful meditation helps focus your energy. It develops the power of concentration and reveals the true nature of reality.

In Zen Keys, Thich Nhat Hanh reports on a conversation between Buddha and a philosopher. The philosopher asked what method Buddhism uses to achieve enlightenment:

“We walk, we eat, we wash ourselves, we sit down...”“What is so special about that? Everyone walks, eats, washes, and sits down...”

“Sir, when we walk, we are aware we are walking; when we eat we are aware we are eating...

When others walk, eat, or sit down, they are not generally aware of what they are doing.”

Mindfulness is consciously being present to what is happening right now.

How aware are you right now?

Bring your awareness to your body...

Feel the sensation of your body pressing against the surface of its support (a chair, the floor, etc.).

Notice areas of tension in your body.

Bring your awareness to your mind...

Notice your thoughts.

Notice your feelings.

Notice what’s on (or in) your mind.

Bring your awareness to your spirit...

Notice your spirit.

How do you experience your spirit?

What is its nature?

What did you notice?

Most often when called to experience the present moment you become aware of sensations, perceptions, thoughts, and feelings that you weren’t conscious of before.

Your mind was somewhere else, perhaps worrying about the past or future. You were only partially conscious.

Mindful meditation is a simple disciplined way to be present to this moment—to experience life fully.

What would you do if
 you only had 6 months to live?

A woman, after learning she had terminal cancer, went to a Zen master for advice. She sobbed as she told him she had only 6 months to live. He listened carefully, and then replied…

Instantly she realized the truth of his message—a truth for all of us. No one knows what the next moment will bring and the past is only a memory. She dedicated herself to being more conscious of each precious moment of her life.

Wondrously, her incurable condition was cured. Her death sentence lifted. Did mindfulness cure her?

We cannot know, yet she is now full of life and grateful for its every moment.

How is Mindful Meditation Different?

Mindfulness meditation differs in that you pay attention to thoughts and sensations instead of ignoring them or letting them pass away.

With this form of meditation, you acknowledge and accept current reality. You accept, and experience thoughts and sensations as they arise. You do not analyze them, or worry about them. You do not judge them. You just accept them as they are.

By observing them without becoming attached to them or judging them, you can see more clearly what is on your mind. You can note how your thoughts and feelings rise and recede. You can note your reactions to them. You become aware of preferences, inaccuracies, and attachments.

You gain insight into what drives you, your views, and aspirations.

The goal is to become more aware of yourself and what you are doing when you are doing it.

Mindful meditation is an intention to be present to your life in the instant that it is happening.

Although practicing mindfulness can be challenging in today’s technological, multitasking world, its rewards are great.

Like other forms of meditation, it helps you relax and live a more satisfying and peaceful life. It supports your natural healing and has many health benefits.

Mindful Meditation Tips

You can do mindful meditation anywhere, anytime. It is simply doing what you do naturally with more conscious awareness. To develop more mindfulness in your life, follow these tips.

Start with dedicating, say, 5 minutes a day and add time as you feel ready.

1. Slow Down.

   Take a deep breath and notice what you are doing, and what is happening in your body, mind and spirit.

2. Respect Inner Wisdom.

   Respond to what you notice, gently, respectfully. Do you need to take a break, have a snack, go for a walk?

3. Do one thing at a time.

   Bring your full awareness to what you do:

   • Practice mindful eating. Be present for your food. Chew each bite slowly. Notice its texture, flavor, and aroma.

   • When you do email, do only email;
   • When talking with a person on the phone be fully present to her or him;
   • When you walk, feel the earth beneath your feet, feel the temperature of the air, see the color of the sky;
   • When you hug a loved one be fully present to her or him, and so on.

   When you try to do more than one thing at a time you create an energy leak, it saps your energy.

   Do your own experiment for a few days and notice how being more mindful affects your energy.

Key Points

Mindful meditation is consciously being present to the life that is happening right now. Follow these 3 tips to develop more mindfulness in your life!

Sources and Resources

Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Keys: A Guide to Zen Practice (New York: Doubleday, 2005).

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