Mindfulness Misconceptions: Debunking the Myths of Mindfulness

In order to understand what mindfulness is, it is important to set aside any misconceptions and know what mindfulness is not. I want to address some of the misconceptions I have heard when talking to people about mindfulness and although there are many I will focus on the following:

1. Mindfulness is focusing on other people’s feelings
2. Mindfulness is tied to a specific religion
3. You have to clear your mind to be mindful
4. Mindfulness requires meditation
5. Mindful people never get angry or stressed
6. You cannot practice mindfulness on the go

Each of these categories are reasons I have heard from people as to why they do not practice mindfulness, to the point that some people get offended or shut off by the mere mention of it. Hopefully as I address each of these it puts your mind at ease and helps you really understand what mindfulness is and how it can help you.

1. Mindfulness is focusing on other people’s feelings: When asking people what they think mindfulness is I have been told numerous times that “mindfulness has to do with not offending others and being mindful of their feelings”. Although this is not a bad practice, albeit impossible to not offend anyone, this is not mindfulness. Mindfulness starts and stops with you. Let me repeat that, mindfulness starts and stops with you; not with your family, not with your friends, not with everyone around you, but with you. Mindfulness in the simplest of terms means being aware of your existence, being aware of your feelings, thoughts, and senses.
2. Mindfulness is tied to a specific religion: Many people have a resistance to mindfulness and meditation because they believe it is a religious practice. Although different religions may practice mindfulness and meditation it definitely does not mean that it is exclusive to them. Mindfulness is a type of self-awareness and as such it is a powerful tool that almost all cultures and religions have taken advantage of in one form or another even if it is called by a different name. I specifically mention cultures as well because even those why do not believe in a divine entity or organized religion can still benefit from self-awareness and many cultures throughout history had rituals, lifestyles, or practices that were forms of mindfulness.
3. You have to clear your mind to be mindful: Yet another misconception is that mindfulness means clearing your mind of all thoughts, which in truth is practically impossible. What it does focus on is being in the present moment, and making decision actively instead of re-actively. Once again let that sink in, how can we make decisions actively if we have cleared our mind of anything that requires action? What it does do is allow us to be in the present moment by focusing on what we are feeling in the moment and reducing the weight of the past or the fear of future what-ifs.
4. Mindfulness requires meditation: I have often heard mindfulness and meditation used interchangeably. Truth be told they often go hand in hand, however it is completely possible to be mindful even without meditation. Where meditation helps is that it is more formal and structured, however I will discuss meditation in another post because that comes with it’s own set of misconceptions. With that being said, it is possible to be mindful in everyday activities. Being mindful of your breath while walking, being mindful of the textures and tastes of your food, even being mindful of the beats and flow of music and none of these require formal meditation.
5. Mindful people never get angry or stressed: Another thing I have heard is people saying “I must be doing mindfulness wrong because I still get angry or overwhelmed”. We are humans and we have emotions, if we turn of our emotions then we might as well be robots. Mindful people are not immune from stress or anger, however what they do learn is how to recognize the emotion and let it pass without holding onto it. Remember when I said that mindfulness allows us to be in the present moment? That is the key, it is possible to be angry for something that is happening or to be stressed however when we are dealing with it in the moment it is manageable. On the flip side, having lingering anger from past experience or constant stress for the future are harder to manage. Studies have shown that people that practice mindfulness are happier people, this is not done be eliminating emotions but by learning to deal with them in the moment instead of holding on to them to deal with in an indefinite time frame.
6. You cannot practice mindfulness on the go: “I don’t have time”. The go to excuse we have all heard that excuse whether for exercise, cooking, cleaning, studying, or even taking time for oneself. However that excuse does not work for mindfulness as it can literally be practiced anywhere and at anytime. In a board meeting with top executives you can focus on the words and how they sound, how they make you feel. Bored? Excited? Nervous? You can even practice mindfulness while driving by being aware of what is around you, it is surprising how much we tune out while driving and just do on autopilot. The important part is that once you learn to practice mindfulness you can do it anywhere.

Hopefully this has helped to clear up some misconceptions on mindfulness, in my next post I will discuss what mindfulness is.