How Do You Stay Mindful During Work And Other (Intense) Activities?

[Vitamine Water]

I'd like to have some guidance in this. I lose myself every time when I get too engaged in an activity (socialising, studying, work stuff). I fall right back asleep. Only when the activity is over I can observe and meditate again. 

[Moreira]

When you are fully engaged in a activity that requires concentration your are meditating, active meditation. 

[Vitamine Water]

9 minutes ago, Moreira said:

When you are fully engaged in a activity that requires concentration your are meditating, active meditation. 

9 minutes ago, Moreira said:

 

There is concentration, yes. But the activity itself is not observed. This is only realised when it's passed.

That's why I feel like I'm lost in monkey mind and not present during these moments. For me, that's not meditation and staying mindful. 

 

 

[Basegodmike]

@Vitamine Water  Hey it's OK, it takes great practice to have no mind on a every day basis. Keep  doing your practices, you will eventually get there. A good exercise to do when your home ,when you have peace of mind is to try to stay in the moment. Without thought!! You feel monkey mind arising let it flow. The more you try to stop ,the more it comes like a vicious volcano.  Stop analyzing , stop worrying and become one with your true essence. Trust the process it gets better, I have  so much peace of mind I get worried about my mind ,because it's completely under my control. ?

[dorg]

3 hours ago, Vitamine Water said:

I lose myself every time when I get too engaged in an activity (socialising, studying, work stuff). I fall right back asleep. Only when the activity is over I can observe and meditate again. 

 

3 hours ago, Vitamine Water said:

There is concentration, yes. But the activity itself is not observed. This is only realised when it's passed.

That's why I feel like I'm lost in monkey mind and not present during these moments. For me, that's not meditation and staying mindful.

But you can observe yourself going into the activity or rather becoming the activity. You go from being the observer to being the movement into activity, to being the activity. You are still you whether you are the observer, the movement, or the activity.

You are not a fixed identity, a fixed image of yourself - you are being, being the current experience you appear to be. This is called being mindful, aware, ie, not being lost nor having a fixed idea of oneself.

Edited September 6, 2018 by dorg

[SOUL]

If you notice presence dissipating or wandering take many 'clarity' breaks to bring awareness back to the moment. It can be as simple as a meditative centering breath for less than a minute every so often.

I know it's a challenge to not just to pay attention to what we are doing but to be aware of us paying attention to what we are doing but if you actively do it initially eventually it will happen passively and it will become a natural state of mind.

[Joseph Maynor]

Make sure the rest of your life is solidly handled and then you can go to work very mindfully.  You can be mindful that you're playing a game.  Make sure you're meditating every day for 1 hour in the morning.  That's the most important habit you can have next to getting 8-9 hours of sleep per night.  Don't be against work -- we all need to work.  But don't attach too much to it either.  Look at work as a vehicle for you bringing home food like a smart lion brings home food to his pride.  A smart lion or lioness doesn't bring home a huge surplus of food.  No, they bring home exactly what's needed by the pride of lions, no more no less.  So, don't get too attached to career.  Career is something that you must do in order to survive, but it's not something you should be too focused on.  Money can't solve all your problems.  And in fact, the few problems that money can solve are dwarfed by the many problems that having money causes!  Most things you spend money on are not needed by you and are actually harming you.  The things you need you have when you have no money.  There's a small subset of things that money can genuinely help you with such as: buying a clean wardrobe, buying organic food, having a nice place to live, making sure your body is nice and clean, making sure you get to the doctor or the dentist, making sure you have a little nest egg saved away.  But after this, chasing money is a poor use of your time.  The best use of your time is to do nothing at all -- to just maintain God Awareness.

Edited September 7, 2018 by Joseph Maynor

[Nahm]

 

@Vitamine Water 

Stomach breathe (consciously) return to it when you realize you’re ‘lost’ in thoughts (unconscious).  

If it’s work you love, maybe a retreat is in order? Inject a mindfulness boost?  If it’s work you don’t love, ime, make a plan towards what you want to do more. The work at hand as a stepping stone reduces any sense of over importance on the job, adds more value & interest, and easily lifts your mood, which enhances your attention. Anything we’re doing is more worthwhile when it’s a part of a bigger, on purpose, plan. The plan manifested on paper, rather than floating in imagination, frees the mind up for more presence now.

After a few minutes of stomach breathing, internally step back, and solve the riddles (why each thought arises), as they’re presented, one by one. I believe there is a falsity in perspective for every arising thought, and that they arise as an attempt to resolve this (monkey mind), a perpetual re-convincing / re-veiling.  Many arise due to an attachment to the a priori I, and in it’s defense. These excessive thoughts are very taxing on attention and energy. Without these, thought in tune with focus on task at hand, is enjoyable, closer to single pointed focus / flow. The bigger plan / higher purpose is important to the focus / flow as well. 

Socially,  we tend to lung breathe (unconscious), lost to thoughts of what others could be thinking (fear) - the loss of mindfulness you describe is being ‘spent’ here. Daily morning meditation.  It takes a while for the body to stomach breath by default, but it’s worthwhile. There is a ‘spaciousness’ or aura which the body realizes. This might take months but who cares right? 

The social thought loop is typically “ I “ thoughts, associated with comparison and judgement, to ‘other I’s’. It not resolvable with more “ I “ thought. Instead, see that every person is needing some love, or giving some love. Give unconditional love in your awareness as often and as deeply as possible. 

Also, consider, arguably, the main focal point of practices like meditation & yoga, is to get doing something which causes a need to consciously stomach breathe. It’s really underestimated. Learning to sing is great for this too.  

You can be getting a lot of ‘the work’ done wherever you are. I trust you’re singing in your commute... ‘pitching’ from the diaphragm? ?

“Where the thinking subsides, the awareness abides”  - Johnny Cochran

https://www.mindful.org/how-to-practice-mindfulness/

 

 

[Charlotte]

4 hours ago, Nahm said:

Also, consider, arguably, the main focal point of practices like meditation & yoga, is to get doing something which causes a need to consciously stomach breathe. It’s really underestimated. Learning to sing is great for this too.  

?

[Charlotte]

Pop a stone in your shoe/sock

[Vitamine Water]

@Basegodmike @dorg @SOUL @Joseph Maynor @Nahm @Charlotte @Artaemis

Thanks everyone for taking your time to reply. I'll take my time to contemplate it. The breathing technique seems the most accessible right now for me. I recently returned from a solo retreat and I can see how much work there has to be done. It's unbelievable to see how asleep I actually am. Though it's so interesting to see the mind fall back in its old habits, even after a week of the retreat. And I feel that work and other activities are causing this. Oh man, the mind loves to be distracted

Thanks again everyone. 

2 hours ago, Charlotte said:

Pop a stone in your shoe/sock

This made me laugh out loud, tnx <3

Edited September 7, 2018 by Vitamine Water