Take in the View: What is Mindfulness?
Therapists often hear that mindfulness practices are boring, or that they “don’t help.” Herein lies the opportunity to challenge a common assumption: that mindfulness is only worthwhile if it “helps” - which, in the U.S., can be code for “makes us more competent, comfortable or happy.” Judging behaviors and experiences from a binary, outcomes-focused standpoint not only sets us up for disappointment, but also undermines the essence of mindfulness as an experience.
Regardless of what mindfulness does, you may have wondered what it actually is. The short answer: it depends. Academics contend that mindfulness can take many forms including a temporary mental state, a personality trait, a cross-cultural construct, a skill that can be developed, and a type of observable behavior.1 For our purposes, we can consider mindfulness a purposeful, non-judgmental awareness of what’s present in your mind, body, and the outside world. Research suggests that this nonjudgmental-acceptance component is a key distinction between mindfulness and “over-thinking” mental states such as obsession and rumination.2
Before continuing, I’d be remiss to not acknowledge the origins of mindfulness in Eastern spiritualities and religions. Roots include, but are not limited to: Buddhism’s notion of sati (“remembering”) and the Hindu concepts of sakshi (“observer self”) and dahyana (“attending”).3,4 If these terms are new to you, that may be by design; developers of mindfulness-based therapies have acknowledged a purposeful “secularizing” of ancient practices to increase their appeal in the West. It seems to have worked, as capitalism has commodified “McMindfulness” to sell magazines and increase corporate productivity. Efforts to address this cultural appropriation are ongoing; Mehta & Talwar’s integrative mindfulness model is just one excellent roadmap for doing so inclusively, and I’ve linked further reading below.7
Meanwhile, researchers (including yours truly) have studied how various forms of mindfulness have physical, mental, and relational benefits.8 At the same time, I’m inclined to question whether prioritizing “what mindfulness can do for us” is an authentic, effective, or culturally-sensitive approach. The integrative mindfulness model describes the goal as not to relieve symptoms via convenient coping skills, but rather to explore suffering and what it might mean to be free of it.7 In other words, it’s about the experience, not the outcomes.
Boredom, disappointment, frustration, and impatience are normal and expected emotions in life, and that fact extends to any mindfulness or other self-care practice. (I’ve admittedly had the thought, at times, that “life is short; mindfulness makes it seem longer.”) Actually, uncomfortable thoughts and feelings are great mindfulness material; you can notice them, accept them without judging them as “good” or “bad,” and move on to the next experience. Life is, after all, simply a collection of experiences.
Where you can start
Common mindfulness exercises available elsewhere on the Internet include the body scan, 5-4-3-2-1, and the “raisin meditation” associated with dialectical behavior therapy. Here are a few others we like:
The “3-3-3” practice can be helpful yourself in the physical present: Notice three things you can see; three things you can hear; and three things you can touch or feel. You can repeat this to support your attending process, picking new items or taking note of the same ones. Can’t find any sounds? Cup a hand over your ear to amplify the “ocean” of ambient noise around you.
The mantra (In Hindu and Buddhist practices), is a sacred utterance that has significant spiritual and cultural significance established over centuries of practice.9 Research suggests that specific psychological pathways and outcomes distinguish true mantras from mantra-like, secular refrains.10 The latter can still be used to non-judgmentally connect with the moment. Examples of “neutral affirmations” include:
“I am here. It is now.”
“My heart is beating.”
“One, two. One, two.”
Feel free to recite one of these (or your own) out loud or in your head as is helpful.
Pick a song that you like listening to. Listen from start to finish, paying your attention to one instrument or sound, such as the bass, keyboard, or percussion. Notice the spaces between snare hits or piano chords. See if you notice anything you didn’t before.
Unplug. Take some inspiration from a recent Onion article. Breathe in deeply (belly fully inflated) and hold it. Slowly sigh out the air as you exhale. See if you can make your out-breaths slower than your in-breaths.
At the end of the day, mindfulness techniques are truly a practice. You don’t have to be good at them, now or ever, to engage with them. The practice of mindfulness is not a mountain to be climbed, but a chance to take in the view, regardless of your vantage point. I hope you’ll take time to appreciate its cultural context and engage in a way that you find authentic and meaningful. This is your opportunity to drop the “improvement” agenda and savor the moment. Although you don’t need to enjoy it, it’s certainly okay to.
References cited in this blog post:
1Chiesa, A. (2013). The difficulty of defining mindfulness: Current thought and critical issues. Mindfulness, 4(3), 255-268.
2Lindsay, E. K., & Creswell, J. D. (2019). Mindfulness, acceptance, and emotion regulation: Perspectives from Monitor and Acceptance Theory (MAT). Current Opinion in Psychology, 28, 120-125.
3Sun, J. (2014). Mindfulness in context: A historical discourse analysis. Contemporary Buddhism, 15(2), 394-415.
4Singh, S. P. (2023). Sakshi and Dhyana: the origin of mindfulness-based therapies. BJPsych Bulletin, 47(2), 94-97.
5Linehan, M. M., & Wilks, C. R. (2015). The course and evolution of dialectical behavior therapy. American journal of psychotherapy, 69(2), 97-110.
6Weaver, F. (2015, January 10). The mainstreaming of mindfulness meditation. The Week.
https://theweek.com/articles/448250/mainstreaming-mindfulness-meditation
7Mehta, N. N., & Talwar, G. (2022). Recognizing roots and not just leaves: the use of integrative mindfulness in education, research, and practice. Psychology from the Margins, 4(6). Available at https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/psychologyfromthemargins/vol4/iss1/6.
8Manser, K. A. (2023). Testing actor and partner mediation effects of the mindfulness-relationship satisfaction association in long-distance relationships [Doctoral dissertation, Illinois Institute of Technology].
9American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Mantra. In APA dictionary of psychology. Retrieved January 24, 2025, from https://dictionary.apa.org/mantra
10Oman, D. (2024). What is a mantra? Guidance for practitioners, researchers, and editors. American Psychologist. Advance online publication. https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/amp0001368
Additional reading:
https://www.andreaglik.com/post/decolonizing-mindfulness
https://www.tmcinstitute.org/blog/2022/01-blog
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/
https://www.autostraddle.com/anger-white-buddhism/
