Practicing mindfulness is not always the most easy or natural thing. I find that between my busy schedule and what seems like never-ending travel, I have to be purposeful with how I bring more mindfulness into my life.
Am I at the point where I am meditating every day? Hardly. However, my top five tips for living mindfully, are, for me, more realistic aims than daily meditation: itās all about taking small steps!
Practice Mindful Eating
I donāt think you can have a clear mind unless you have a healthy body. My journey to achieving healthy skin has driven me to reflect on the foods I eat every day. By listening to my body and understanding how I react to various foods, I am able to make informed decisions on what I eat. Removing dairy from my diet was a huge change that helped my skin and body. I encourage everyone to practice mindful eatingā¦Splendid SpoonĀ is an amazingĀ starting point!
Create a GOOD Playlist
Music helps me focus, and it also helps me release stress. Mindful music doesnāt have to be tranquil āmeditationā type of beats either. You might be surprised about what youād find on my playlists. Currently, Iām really into āBounce Backā by Big Sean and all things Drake. Find your favorite playlist to keep you motivated throughout the day, whatever type of music that may be.
Keep A Journal
This is one of the best things that I do that I need to do more of! Keeping a journal allows me to reflect and be grateful for my never-ending personal growth. Sometimes, Iāll look back at journal entries from even just a month before, and Iāll be surprised at how much of an improvement Iāve made in my life because of one simple observation. Itās so easy for us all to be hard on ourselves, and a journal is such an amazing way to document, recognize, and feel proud of your spiritual growth. I also love jotting down little bursts of creativity and ideas!
Go Phone-Free Once A Week
Work emails, personal emails, texts, Instagram, Facebookā¦weāre all on overload. Since I personally runĀ cocokindās Instagram, itās so easy for me to be on my phone into the wee hours of the night. Iām not even going to bring up emails, checking online orders, communicating with my team, or checking random celebrity gossip. Itās admittedly hard for me to unplug, so Iāve found that the most effective way to do this is to set hard phone-free time frames every week. I do it for at least a half day every week. You can do a half day, a full day, or even just a couple of hours! This practice of ābeing presentā even for just a small period of time is so life changing.
Workoutā¦ For Your Mind!
I believe that any form of physical movement brings positivity into your life. Working out obviously keeps me healthy, but also, as friend my put it, āItās a mental victory, itās something that you can control and feel proud of every time you do it.ā Iāll take it! Recently, Iāve been obsessed with a Hip Hop Class at Uforia Studio in San Francisco. I come out of that class in the best mood with such mental clarity. Plus, itās such a good and fun physical workout.
āPriscilla
This post was also posted toĀ Splendid Spoon. Check out their blog for other great tips on how to achieve mindfulness!