Being Present

Many students talk about not really “sitting” for meditation practice, but rather checking in throughout the day to become mindful or take a breath awareness pause. Many students say, “I am mindful during my day, and I don’t sit for practice.”

These students are describing informal mediation practices. Many types of informal practices range from very brief to a bit longer practice. We consider these pauses throughout our day as “pocket practices”. They are practices that we pull out at the moment to use for a brief respite from whatever is happening or to remind ourselves to come back to the present with mindfulness.

Pocket practices, pauses, and returning to the present, are extremely valuable practices to use and cultivate. They help us remember our intention to remain in the present. They help us turn down our nervous systems for just a moment. They give us a moment to check in with ourselves about whether we are being skillful in our interactions. These in-the-moment exercises allow us to notice if we are reacting out of habit or interacting skillfully from our values.

I encourage you to practice informally throughout the day as it is a way of cultivating awareness at the moment. You can select a specific activity like brushing your teeth, washing the dishes, or sweeping the floor to become mindful of the task. Bringing full awareness and attention to these tasks – any task for that matter – leads us to become aware of all the sensations included in the task, and to become aware of how we are thinking and reacting to what we are doing.

However, informal practices are not the practice that will build the mindfulness muscle. They help maintain and support our formal practice but are not replacements. Nothing can replace formal mediation practice.

Formal meditation practice is the act of intentionally taking a meditation posture for an extended period and engaging an object of practice such as the breath, body, or sounds. The supports for formal practice include a regular schedule, a specific location that we use repeatedly, and practicing for a predetermined period.

The purpose of formal meditation practice is to train the mind. Just like any other skill, we are not going to build any finesse if we devote only a minute or two to it throughout the day. We benefit when we set aside time to practice – whether its learning how to pitch, how to sew, how to play the piano, or how to code software. A minute or two, here and there aren’t going to serve us well.

When students tell me they are primarily using informal practices, I encourage them to reverse order. Take 10 minutes at the beginning of the day, devote it to formal practice, and supplement with informal practices throughout the rest of the day. The gain will be greater and quicker, meaning that being present grows – coming more frequently and lasting longer.