Maintaining daily mindfulness

[Spiny O'Norman]

I would appreciate any tips that people have for maintaining daily mindfulness - how to "remember" to be aware more of the time.
Thanks in anticipation.
Rick

[acinteyyo]

Hi Rick,

I can only tell you about how I'm trying to maintain mindfullness. By practicing mindfulness of breathing (ānāpānasati) every day, sometimes with using the mantra "Buddho" sometimes without, depending on how mindful I am, thus helps me a lot to remember that I "want" to maintain mindfulness the whole day long. So when I remember that I start saying "Bud-" in my mind at the in-breath and "-dho" at the out-breath by whatever I'm doing at the moment. The more I do that, the more often I remember to maintain mindfulness throughout the day. I try doing it particularly when I'm doing sitting-meditation but also try to remember that while standing, walking or lying and whatever I'm doing. I would say it may be a sort of "self-conditioning" which leads to an automatism in maintaining mindfulness.
And in times when I notice that I'm not very mindful at all, I try to see it with wisdom. Everything is impermanent and I'm (still) a puthujjana so there are times when there is more mindfulness and there are times when there is less. No reason to be upset, but important to be at least simply aware of.
Maybe it's useful for you...

best wishes

[Rhino]

I'm not sure who said it once, but sometimes it helps for me (not literally):

Look at your unawareness. If you do so you'll be at once mindful.

[Peter]

I would appreciate any tips that people have for maintaining daily mindfulness - how to "remember" to be aware more of the time.

I think it's really no different than cultivating any other habit. So you can look up tips for forming habits. The blog ZenHabits has some good tips.

[Individual]

I would appreciate any tips that people have for maintaining daily mindfulness - how to "remember" to be aware more of the time.
Thanks in anticipation.
Rick

Pick certain moments to be particularly mindful. When you're walking the dog, when you're doing dishes, when you're doing laundry, etc..

[retrofuturist]

Greetings RIck,

To complement the good advice above, I'd suggest occasionally ramping your practice up from 5 precepts to 8.

The reduction in 'entertainments' for example allows the mind to become more stilled off and on the cushion. Only when we're not caught up in the details or subject matter of our experiences can we be truly mindful of them.

Metta,
Retro.

[Ngawang Drolma.]

Greetings RIck,

The reduction in 'entertainments' for example allows the mind to become more stilled off and on the cushion. Only when we're not caught up in the details or subject matter of our experiences can we be truly mindful of them.

Metta,
Retro.

[Spiny O'Norman]

Hi Rick,
I would say it may be a sort of "self-conditioning" which leads to an automatism in maintaining mindfulness.
And in times when I notice that I'm not very mindful at all, I try to see it with wisdom.

Yes, that makes a lot of sense. I use the word "observe" as a self-reminder to be mindful in the present.

Rick

[Spiny O'Norman]

Greetings RIck,

To complement the good advice above, I'd suggest occasionally ramping your practice up from 5 precepts to 8.

The reduction in 'entertainments' for example allows the mind to become more stilled off and on the cushion.

Good suggestion - I'll give this some thought. I watch too much TV, which is really quite mind-numbing.
I get quite mentally tired because of work which I think makes it more difficult to remember to be mindful.

Rick

[Spiny O'Norman]

I would appreciate any tips that people have for maintaining daily mindfulness - how to "remember" to be aware more of the time.
Thanks in anticipation.
Rick

Pick certain moments to be particularly mindful. When you're walking the dog, when you're doing dishes, when you're doing laundry, etc..

Another good suggestion. I used to do breathing meditation while walking to work, I will try to re-introduce this.

Rick

[Spiny O'Norman]

I would appreciate any tips that people have for maintaining daily mindfulness - how to "remember" to be aware more of the time.

I think it's really no different than cultivating any other habit. So you can look up tips for forming habits. The blog ZenHabits has some good tips.

Thanks, I will check out ZenHabits.

Rick

[ckatgo]

I have a watch that beeps every hour, when the watch goes off it is time for a mindful breath. Regardless of where I am or what I am doing. Now if I am giving a speech (which my work sometimes calls for) I just stay mindful of the beep.

metta,
kat

[christopher:::]

Many excellent suggestions here. Thanks one and all..!