Growing Mindfulness

One action we should all take is the development of a mindfulness practice. The word ‘mindfulness’ is used a lot and is easy to dismiss, but for the reasons discussed in the section on psychological freedom, without such a practice it will be difficult to participate fully in the other actions discussed below. We each need to find out what works for us, whether it’s meditation, yoga, running or something else entirely. I do a conscious breathing exercise every day, first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening. I started doing this about five years ago and the change in my life has been profound.

It is also important that we help and inspire other people to do the same. There have been discussions on whether or not math should be mandatory in school, but there has been no such debate around mindfulness. It is entirely possible to go through school and college or university without developing a practice of one’s own. Every one of us would be better off with more mindfulness—the same cannot be said about algebra.

Another way to contribute to the spread of mindfulness is through research and entrepreneurship. Much remains to be understood about how different techniques, or drugs such as psilocybin, influence our brains. There is plenty of room for services such as individualized coaching, and for more apps that help with meditation and conscious breathing.