Mindfulness and mediation are accessible and easy. Anyone with at least one free minute in a day can try meditating, even just for a bit.

There’s no need for extensive training to perfect your mindfulness technique. You probably already know how to be mindful, you just aren’t calling it that yet.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the practice of being aware of yourself, your feelings, your thoughts, and the situation you find yourself in.

What is mindful meditation?

Mindful meditation is the practice of taking a beat, listening to your thoughts, and letting them flow by. Being aware of how you feel and the sensations around you (mindful) and letting those feelings wash over you without affecting you (meditation).

What are some mindfulness exercises?

Figuring out how to start being mindful can feel like a minefield. Start with simple mindfulness exercises. Sit down, look at something nice (ideally out a window into nature or even just a picture of nature), and just breathe.

Focus on your breathing and your body. Isolate the sensations you can feel through your body and focus on them. This is sometimes called body scans or scanning your body and is one of the most straightforward mindfulness practices you can do.

As you do these body scans and focus on your body, your feelings, and your thoughts, your mind will naturally start to quiet. Congratulations! You’re doing mindfulness meditation!

It might not be the transcendental meditation you were expecting, but this simple meditation practice can improve your emotional and physical wellbeing and even your emotional intelligence by keeping you more in touch with and aware of your emotions and more aware of your physical health.

What if practicing mindfulness is still hard?

Mindfulness practices are great for stress reduction, but worrying if you aren’t doing it right can increase your stress levels. The good news is that there is no right way to practice mindfulness and mindful meditation. You just have to try different mindfulness practices until you find the right one for you.

Some people thrive with guided meditations. The external voice of someone else helps stop some minds from wandering. Some people like to cultivate mindfulness sleep practices—meditating when lying in bed, just before going to sleep. This can help with improved sleep for many.

There are plenty of forms of meditation and mindfulness. There’s no correct way to be mindful and create a mindful home.

So long as you’re doing your best, bringing your attention back when it wanders, and keeping up the regular practice (maybe weekly or daily practice), you’ll develop your mindful awareness and mindfulness technique.