Being mindful can be a hard thing to grasp for a lot of people. It is easy for your mind to start wandering into thoughts of the future, or thinking about events that happened in the past. With mindfulness, you must learn to live in the present and enjoy the moments that come across your path. Many people get stressed very easily, or lose sight of what is very important to them. When stuff like this happens, you have to be mindful and take control of yourself and what you are doing. You cannot worry about what will happen tomorrow, or next year. Being mindful will help you enjoy life more, appreciate your friends and family, and make you aware of the little things in life that you may have been missing. There are five very important things you must do in order to be mindful of yourself.

First, you must do one thing at a time. Its understandable to want to get things done and multitask, but sometimes you really need to put all your focus on one thing. If you’re going to take a relaxing bath, don’t bring your laptop in the bathroom so you can get stuff done. Enjoy the moment that you’re in right now, and indulge yourself in whatever it is you’re doing. If you’re doing one thing at a time, you will be more focused and less stressed.

Second, do things slowly. A lot of times people want to rush in order to get more stuff done, but sometimes that isn’t what you should be doing. You need to be able to plan out what you are doing each day, and do just those things. Do not rush to do them, and give yourself enough time to complete the tasks you need. If you have a pile of work to complete, do not try to do it all in one day. Take your time, and be mindful of the things around you. Doing things quickly takes away from the efficiency of the task. If you do it fast, it might not necessarily be as good as it could be if you did it slow. This can apply to situations that may not even be work related. For example, when you’re eating. Many people will eat very fast in order to get back to whatever they were doing before they got hungry. Sometimes it is best to just eat slow, take your time, and enjoy the moment.

Third, stop worrying about the future. This is one thing I want to really stress. Sometimes, no matter what point you are at in your life, you want to be in a different spot. It’s easy to image what your life is going to be like in five or ten years, if you’ll be married, if you’ll have kids, even if you’ll be working in the same job. It can be very stressful to think about the future because sometimes it affects what you are doing in the present. The best way to stop stressing about the future is to stop thinking about it. Focus on what you are doing, what memories you are making now, and enjoying the moment as it comes. If you are constantly worrying about the future, there is no way to live in the present.

Fourth, be a good talker and a good listener. Sometimes, especially in the modern day, it is hard to be present when we are having conversations with people. If we are sitting with friends, they might be on their phones while their listening to you speak, or thinking about something else. This can really hurt people. In order t be mindful, you have to be present. Do not let your mind roam during other people’s conversations. Open your ears, listen closely, and give good advice. You can help people simply by listening to them, so put your phones down, and put your thoughts away while others are speaking. Focus on the person you are with and the time that you have with that person.

Fifth, enjoy the little things in life. Sometimes it is hard to be happy with the little things in life when there are so many people with bigger things. You have to appreciate everything you see and every moment that life gives you. For example, one thing I always savor is the sight of the mood lit up in the night sky. When I see the moon, I think about how amazing life is and how something so small in the sky can make me so happy. This is how you can become mindful. You need to understand that things such as nature, family, and simple things can make you the happiest person in the world. Little moments like laughing so hard until your stomach hurts, staring up at the starry night sky together, or talking about memories from the past, can make you realize how lucky you are to live the life you have. Enjoy everything that comes your way in life and with that, you will be mindful.