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“Be more, achieve more and stress less, how mindfulness can change the way you live, as it says on the back cover, now who wouldn't want more of that in their lives? But you say, we are all far too busy to have time for mindfulness, this is the very reason that this book was written.
The joy of mindfulness is in its simplicity, its silence and its calm state of mind. The Authors want you to journey with them to a new way of controlling your fears, anxieties and stress with a tool that is available to all. You just simply have to learn how to use it.
This book is designed for busy people and that describes most of us today. It’s made up of easy to read sections and exercises, all designed to gradually build your ability to use mindfulness. There are five sections in the book, discussing everything from our mental lives, difficult emotions and moving forward. Mindfulness techniques can benefit an individual in all those situations.
The Authors ask the question, how often have you actually enjoyed a coffee break on your own, for example. Have you ever just sat there and let your mind go blank or is it just another excuse to think about work, what we have or haven't done and working through out to do lists in your mind.
Mindfulness according to the Authors is a state of total awareness, total calm, almost a parallel universe where time stands still. Imagine this… you are sitting at desk, you make yourself aware of the feeling of the chair beneath you, you hear the noise of the office, you feel the desk under your fingertips. You look up at the clock and notice the time, you notice that you are noticing the time, then you focus on the seconds as they tick away. In the background you become aware of the window being opened, you hear a car alarm going off. You become aware of the breeze blowing against you neck and how cold it feels and so on. This is mindfulness, being totally in the moment, freeing your mind of the endless chatter of life. When you stop you realise that you feel strangely calm and relaxed, mindfulness is powerful but you have to practice it to get the full benefit.
The section on handling difficult emotions is particularly intriguing, as the Authors suggest using what they call the REAL system to help you manage them. REAL stands for Recognising (I notice the anger rising), Experiencing (I am suffering, this is hard), Analysing (I see that things are not as I would wish them to be) and Letting go (This too will pass, just one breath). They believe that you should try to understand what your Anger/hate/fear is up to, without getting caught up in it or avoiding it.
This book is designed to read when you have time, it's in five sections but each section is further broken down into very manageable chapters. It's a book that is designed to fit into a very busy schedule and it's a book that will make you come back to it again and again.
In the final part it looks at moving forward. It highlights the fact that mindfulness is crucial to us in these modern, busy times. It looks at the pitfalls of practicing mindfulness and how to overcome them. And it revisits our awareness and how it is central to mindfullness.
I recommend you read this book, give it the time it deserves, own your diary and try as much as you can to be in the moment.
You won't regret it.
Hello, I'm Angela Brophy and I am an Advanced and Accredited Executive, Life & Career Coach. I am a Member of both the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and the European Coaching & Mentoring Association (EMCC). I have over 20 Years Experience in the world of Business and Financial Services and I have a passion for Coaching and Personal Development. I want my clients to succeed in every way and to achieve their Perfect Lifestyle.