If you have been struggling to reach the next step in your school or career, we have news for you–it might be because you are not being mindful enough. According to attorney and mindfulness coach, Mona Tashroudian, practicing positive mindfulness can help you achieve all your goals.
“Mindfulness helps us to be truly present with ourselves. It is a bringing together of our thoughts, feelings, and physical selves,” says Tashroudian. But, what exactly is mindfulness and how can we become more mindful in our daily life and career?
Keep scrolling for Tashroudian’s empowering tips and techniques for practicing mindfulness in your life.
FIND ANCHORS
Life can get intense at times. You can find yourself thinking about 30 things at once with no sign of slowing down. Tashroudian shares what she does when she feels like her mind is taking over. “I bring attention to my feet or when I’m driving I bring attention to my hands on the steering wheel. I do this for grounding or anchoring. It makes you realize you’re here and present. Find anchors that work for you and bring you back to your present self.”
SHIFT NEGATIVE TO POSITIVE
Nothing is perfect. There will be times when things go wrong, but the key is to not dwell on them. No good can come from focusing on negative things. This is something I’m sure you’ve heard said countless times but it is completely true: you get what you put out. Negativity breeds negativity, but thankfully, positivity breeds positivity. Dwell on the positive.
OFFER SOME LOVE
We’re always reminded not to judge others, but we easily forgot that it’s possible to judge ourselves. Unfortunately, when we do this, we’re harsh and can bring ourselves down. Tashroudian reminds us that, “instead of judging offer some love. Ask yourself, what did I do right today?” Be mindful of when you’re judging yourself and when you are, offer yourself some love.
STOP THE COMPARISON GAME
Comparing yourself to others is useless. You’re always going to meet someone with a skill or attribute that you don’t have BUT there are also skills and attributes you have that others don’t. These are the things that make you unique. But not comparing yourself is easier said than done. “I’ve realized that our problem with being mindful comes from the expectations of how we should be. Sometimes you just have to stop and tell yourself, ‘You are enough. You are perfect. You are fine.'”
MEDITATE
The whole point of meditation is to slow down. Instead of letting your mind take over and stress you out, let go and focus on the positive and peaceful. “The more you meditate, the more it will help you slow down and the more you’ll be able to respond instead of reacting to things.”
TAKE THREE DEEP BREATHS
Stress can easily come in and kill a good vibe. The thing to do when feeling stressed or worked up is to take three deep breaths. But slowing down your breathing is just part of it. “As you’re breathing, take the time to feel your breath. Feel your heartbeat. Really feel it. Recognize what stress feels like. Accept the feeling of being stressed and when it happens again, you’ll know how to respond to that feeling.”
SHOW GRATITUDE
When life gets too hectic, we may find ourselves focusing on what we don’t have. The best thing we can do in moments like this is show gratitude. “Writing down what we are grateful for allows us to focus on what we have, not what we believe we’re missing,” Tashroudian says. Life has many blessings and choosing to be grateful for them stops you from dwelling on the things you don’t have or can’t change.
Tashroudian is a partner at Tashroudian Law Group, APC (“TLG”) in Woodland Hills, California.
