Mindfulness Practice: What, Why & How
Posted on March 05, 2025 by Renu Sachdeva, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
5 simple mindfulness practices that can easily be incorporated into our daily lives to manage stress, anxiety and intrusive feelings and thoughts.
Many of us are seeking quick remedies to manage intrusive thoughts that cause stress or anxiety while at work or at home: a “magic pill” or “a reset button” that we can quickly use to calm the chatter in the mind and then return to whatever it is that needs our attention.
This article explains the basics of mindfulness and offers 5 simple mindfulness practices that can easily be incorporated into our daily lives to manage stress, anxiety and intrusive feelings and thoughts.
What is Mindfulness
Mindfulness is the practice of focusing on the present moment and being aware of your thoughts, feelings, emotions and bodily sensations. Its about taking control of your mind and doing one thing at a time, in the present moment, with full attention and acceptance.
Attention = Concentrating fully on whatever you are doing in that moment: walking, jogging, cooking, painting, dancing, eating, etc., and not letting you mind wander to the past or the future
Acceptance = Suspending judgement; experiencing things as they are – not trying to change anything or even thinking about changing anything.
Mindfulness can be considered as the simplest form of meditation; one moment at a time. That’s why people are able to quite easily incorporate it into their daily lives and routines. Unlike meditation, mindfulness does not require you to learn special techniques or dedicate a specific time of day / place to doing it. However, both meditation and mindfulness complement each other and can be used in tandem to enhance overall well-being.
Key Benefits of Mindfulness
At the most basic level, mindfulness calms the mind, but at a deeper levels, regular practice of mindfulness improves mental & physical health, productivity, quality of life and more:
1. Mental Health: Reduces stress, anxiety and even helps with depression
2. Physical Health: Lowers blood pressure, improves quality of sleep, improves immune system, helps cope better with pain
3. Emotional Regulation: Helps manage distressful emotions like anger, guilt, self-doubt, grief and improves emotional responses (vs mere reactions)
4. Productivity & Cognitive Functions: Enhances focus, attention, concentration, memory, decision-making and creative-thinking
5. Quality of Life: Improves work-life balance, resilience and inter-personal relationships
6. Self-Awareness: Promotes better self-care, self-understanding and self-compassion
How to Practice Mindfulness
Here are step-wise instructions for 5 short and simple, yet powerful mindfulness practices that you can try. As they only need 2-5 minutes of your time, you can practice them several times a day, if needed. Most can be done at home and your place of work or even when out and about (if you feel comfortable). Needless to say, with regular practice, you will get better at it.
#1. Deep Breathing with Intention
#2. Counting Breaths
#3. Concentrated Focus
#4. 5-4-3-2-1 Technique
#5. Bumble Bee Breathing
- Mindfulness Practice #1: Deep Breathing with Intention
1. Close your eyes and focus on your breath
2. Make an intention in your mind that with each breath you take, you will feel more and more relaxed
3. Mentally tell yourself that with each inhalation you are breathing-in fresh, positive energy and with each exhalation you are releasing negative, stale energy
4. Breathe in to a count of 4, breathe out to a count of 8. Repeat at least 3 times
NB: Each count = one second. You may initially want to inhale and exhale to a count of 4 and then build up the exhalation to a count of 8.
- Mindfulness Practice #2: Counting Breaths
1. Sit quietly & close your eyes
2. Start counting
• “one” as you draw a deep breath in
• “two” as you slowly breathe out
• “three” on the inhalation
• “four” on the exhalation, and so on till “ten”
3. If you lose count, start all over again without judgment
4. Repeat the count from 1-10 if you feel like it
- Mindfulness Practice #3: Concentrated Focus
1. Close your eyes and take 2-3 deep breaths
2. Run your fingernail firmly (yet gently) across a part of your body like your arm or leg
3. Sitting quietly, focus on the sensation for as long as possible – see how long you can feel it
4. Repeat the steps, if desired, and try to prolong the sensations
5. If your mind wanders, bring it back to the task without judgment
- Mindfulness Practice #4: 5-4-3-2-1 Technique
1. Sit down or lie back on a chair or recliner
2. Take 2-3 deep breaths to relax yourself
3. Slowly start making a mental note of:
– 5 THINGS that you can SEE around you: e.g. a plant, a photo frame, a clock on the wall…
– 4 THINGS that you can FEEL with your body: e.g. your shirt, the chair you are sitting on, your skin….
– 3 THINGS that you can HEAR: e.g. the buzz of the AC, birds chirping, clock ticking, cars honking,…
– 2 THINGS you can SMELL: e.g. your own perfume, the air-freshener, coffee brewing…
– 1 THING that you can TASTE: e.g. the gum in your mouth or the fruit you had earlier
- Mindfulness Practice #5 – Bumble Bee Breathing
1. Sit up straight with your eyes closed
2. Take a few deep breaths to relax yourself
3. Place your index fingers gently on the cartilage of your ears
4. Take a deep breath in and as you breathe out, make a loud humming sound like a bumble bee
5. Gently pump the fingers resting on the cartilage – press and release very gently and quickly
6. Repeat 2-3 times, if you feel like it
SOME DOs & DON”Ts:
• Don’t put your finger inside the ear
• Don’t pump your finger too hard
• Keep your mouth closed while humming
• Don’t repeat more than 3 times
Living Mindfully
Mindfulness is simply about being fully present in everyday activities. It involves consciously engaging with the task at hand, noticing when your mind wanders, and gently bringing your focus back without judgment.
Remember to pick activities to suit your preference, personality and schedule
If you believe you need help to manage anxiety, stress or other distressful feelings and emotions experienced in your personal or professional life, book a session with a life coach or therapist.
