Mindfulness.

Do you live your life each day not knowing where all the day went to? Do you fall into your thoughts while doing an activity and later find yourself doing something entirely different. "How did I get here?" you ask yourself. A lot of people are in this category. Such instances like this show how many people are not mindful. They live their lives and take anything that comes their way. They go with the flow. They get swept by the thoughts of the past and transcend to thoughts of the future. They live in a dream world forgetting to actually live. This isn't a healthy way to live. If you keep going with the flow, you will wake up on the other side of 80 and wonder where your entire life went.

What exactly is Mindfulness? Mindfulness is the state of consciousness of one's emotions, thoughts, physical and mental wellbeing. It could also mean self-awareness. A person that is mindful lives in the present. A mindful person is conscious of what they do at every given time. Such person isn't moved by impulse. A mindful person is a powerful person. If you want to be successful, try mastering yourself. You cannot master yourself if you do not master your emotions.

What really is self-awareness? It's simply to be aware of one'self, abilities, emotions, thoughts, body, etc. Your being self-aware will help you track the source of a problem you are facing. When the source of a problem is known, solution isn't far. How can one practice self-awareness?

1. By self-reflection: A person cannot fully know themselves if they do not self-reflect on a daily basis. You can do this by looking into an actual relection i.e a mirror, or a mental reflection, which is your mind. Look into the mirror and observe yourself. Observe your struggles and pain. Observe what gives you joy and peace. By knowing every detail about yourself, you know how to maneuver every challenge. In fact, you forsee the challenges and solve them before you experience them. As for the mental reflection, you need to go into your mind to know yourself. This might sound ridiculous but it's very possible. You are a tripatite being. You are a Spirit, who has a Soul (which is the seat of your emotions) and you have a body. Your mind is your soul. You need to do some soul searching. The mental reflection will be explained in the next point.

2. Meditate: Meditation is very important in living a good life. Meditation isn't the same as thinking. When you meditate, you are in a quiet and comfortable place. This allows you to go into your mind to observe your life, in the present, the past and the future. You want to be at peace with yourself so you create the peace from within. It is very possible to be silent outward but noisy inside. When a lot of thoughts go through your mind at once, your mind is noisy. Meditation helps you arrange your thoughts as you would arrange your books on a shelf in your library.

3. Journal: Another effective way of being mindful is journaling. Sometimes we cannot help thinking some thoughts about ourselves. When we cannot figure things out, these thoughts keep coming back no matter how much we suppress them. Journaling helps you to figure out why you think the way you do and act the way you act every given moment. Knowing this will provide you the right reaction to every given situation. You will know better how to control your emotions of anger, bitterness, regret, unforgiveness to yourself and other people.

4. Be in the moment: Always make the conscious effort to be in the moment. Don't just drift off while you are having a conversation with someone. Be conscious of every reaction you make to other people's actions or to unforseen situations. You need to be able to know what you did in the morning, afternoon and night. Don't be the person who forgets what they ate for breakfast. This helps you keep track of your time. Time is more than money. It is gold. You don't want to lose something so precious. 

5. Be open minded: Being open minded means to be flexible with how you think. Don't hold on to your opinions strictly. You can only get better in life when you are open minded. It helps you to just experience life as it is and it reduces your tendency to be judgemental. It also helps you enjoy and make the most out of life.

Mindfulness is one secret to abundance, total wellbeing and prosperity. Practicing mindfulness will keep you in control of yourself, having control of your own mind gives you power and the mind is one of the most powerful instruments in the entire universe. Learn to use this gift of nature and you will have a life worth living.