A few easy steps to bring mindful practice into your day.

Practicing daily mindfulness does not have to be meditative or time consuming. In fact you can practice mindfulness in all aspects of life during the day. A mindful practice of simply being present, noticing and processing new information can enhance wellbeing and life satisfaction.

Try this simple tip to help you become more mindful in every day life.

WALK WITH awareness

Walking with awareness gives you a moment to be fully present, focusing your attention to your current or new surroundings. Start by paying attention to the sounds you hear. Try not to label them. So instead of "car ,bird etc" focus on the sound, pitch, vibrations. Hold here and just listen.

You can also turn this attention to your body, feeling your feet making contact with the ground and engage your core to improve posture.

USE YOUR SENSES

When ready, shift your awareness to your sense of smell. Again, simply notice, don’t push or

force yourself to feel anything at all, just bring attention to the sense of smell, whatever you

discover.

NOTICE THE SMALL THINGS!

When ready, move your focus to vision: really look around, look at the small details, colours, objects and whatever else you see, even something that seems insignificant. Notice something new each time you walk. Don’t force this or go looking! But being presently engaged in your walk will uncover new things.

BREATHE

A great breathing technique that you can use anywhere was introduced by Dr Benson, it involves saying the words in your mind "breathe" as you inhale, and "relax" as you exhale. This very powerful and effective technique can be used discreetly, thus is a great choice to use throughout the day to reduce stress or elicit feelings of calm.

Rachel Tinker is a life and wellbeing coach in Kent, specialising in wellbeing and mindful living to enhance life satisfaction. She coaches online, or at her clinic in Cranbrook Kent, in areas of health and wellness, positive behaviour change and with life transitions. www.rtwellness.com info@rtwellness.com