All About You: Five times to be mindful during your day

EDITOR’S NOTE: Motivating employees to work safely is part of the safety professional’s job. But who motivates the motivator? In this monthly column, veteran safety pro and professional speaker Richard Hawk offers his entertaining brand of wisdom to inspire safety pros to perform at their best.

The “Mother of Mindfulness.” That’s the nickname Ellen Langer, a psychology professor at Harvard University, has acquired during her long and successful career researching, teaching and writing about mindfulness and its influence on our well-being. I highly recommend her books.

Mindfulness is deliberately paying attention to your environment and inner feelings without judgment. It can strengthen safety because it increases our ability to be aware of our environment and less distracted.

Langer doesn’t dismiss using meditation to improve mindfulness, but she believes it’s unnecessary. I agree. In fact, after years of meditating, I recently stopped engaging in it “formally” anymore.

Instead, as Langer suggests, I purposefully practice mindfulness throughout my day. It works for me, and I’m confident it will do the same for you. Here are five times to practice mindfulness every day.

1. In the morning
No doubt you have a morning routine. Mine includes picking out my clothes. Before I open my closet, I stop and remind myself to pay attention to the colors and texture of the clothes – noting what they look and feel like. You can do this for any part (or all) of your morning routine.

2. When you’re eating
Because I travel regularly, selecting meals at restaurants is an opportunity for me to practice mindfulness. First, I put down my phone and don’t pick it up until my meal is finished. (From firsthand experience, I can testify that nearly every traveler looks at their phone while eating.)

When my meal arrives, I take a moment or two to look at the presentation of the food. I then eat slowly, purposefully noting the food’s aroma, taste and texture.

You can practice mindfulness even if you’re in a hurry. I’ve rushed through airports and still found time to be mindful. You’ll be surprised how much it helps you calm down.

3. While you’re shopping
The next time you go to the grocery store, stop and observe all the beautiful colors. For example, the produce section is a grand display of sensory stimulation. I like to pick a primary color, such as red, and notice which items are that color. It’s incredible how it forces you to mindfully see specific fruits and vegetables. I occasionally do this color exercise when I take my daily walk. Try it – I promise you’ll be surprised at the new things you notice.

4. During conversations
If there’s such a thing as advanced mindfulness, having a conversation requires it. Conversation includes a lot of frontal lobe activity, which pulls away from recognition of external input. But with practice, you can be mindful.

Take time to note the other person’s facial expressions, eye movements and the dozens of signals they display. If this becomes too distracting, wait until your mindfulness skills improve before trying again. I don’t engage in this type of mindfulness all the time. I often practice it for the first few moments when I meet someone new.

5. After waking up or just before falling asleep
Unlike conversations, practicing mindfulness when you wake up or before sleep is easy to do. Rather than getting out of bed right away in the morning, take time to notice your breathing, how you feel and what you can see. I like to do the same thing once I sit up on the side of the bed. Before you fall asleep, do the same.

There are endless ways to practice mindfulness throughout your day purposefully. As you improve, you’ll be pleasantly surprised how it improves your quality of life.

Direct to your inbox: Sign up to be notified in email about new "All About You" columns.

Podcast page

Subscribe to the podcast feed in iTunes