10 Simple Habits To Become More Present In Your Daily Life
Becoming more present is essential to live in the moment. Being present is how you connect to the Here and Now, and engage mindfully with what you’re doing while noticing how you’re feeling. It also helps your body and mind slow down, and bring your attention back to yourself.
With our erratic, and stressful lives, we often need to help our busy and distracted minds stop worrying and come back to what’s important instead.
To help you accomplish this, I’m sharing with you 10 simple habits to add to your self-care routine to become more present in your everyday life.
10 simple habits to add to your self-care routine to become more present in your life
1. Mindful breathing
Mindful breathing is a powerful way to turn your awareness back to yourself and the present moment.
What is great about mindful breathing is that it is a quick and simple habit that you can easily reach for whenever you need it most. You can practice it whenever and wherever you feel like it. And it doesn’t require a lot of time before you notice the benefits.
Practicing mindful breathing is easy. You close your eyes or not (depending on your preference), then you take long, deep breaths and bring your awareness to the rise and fall of your chest and belly as you inhale and exhale. You pay attention to how your body and your body feel. And you keep going for at least a couple of minutes. Do not hesitate to increase the time, and practice for longer if you feel like it).
Tip:
Starting your morning practicing mindful breathing in bed helps you connect to yourself and your body first thing in the morning. It’s a great way to start your day feeling present, balanced, and connected while enabling you to approach the rest of your day with a clear and focused mind.
2. Engage your senses
Engage your senses, bring attention to the sights around you, to the noises, to the smells. Engaging all your senses helps you slow down and focus your attention on the present moment and everything that surrounds you.
Identical to mindful breathing, engaging your senses is a simple habit that can be done anywhere, at any time, and doesn’t require a lot of time. Being attentive to your senses for just one or two minutes is already enough to feel the benefits.
3. Use a mantra or affirmation
Using a mantra or affirmation is a great way to focus on attention on a specific thing — in this case, repeated words.
For this, choose a mantra or affirmation that resonates with you, and repeat it throughout the day whenever you need it. The simple act of repeating these chosen words will help you become focused, and connect you to the present moment.
Tip:
It doesn’t have to be a mantra or an affirmation; it can be anything else that feels right to you. It’s your own practice after, so don’t hesitate to personalize it. (Personally I use neither mantra or affirmation, but poems instead.)
4. Go for a mindful walk
What better way is there to be present and connected to the moment than a mindful walk?
Walking is always an excellent habit to add to your everyday self-care practice, but opting for a mindful walk in particular is like its own magic trick. The simple act of paying attention to what surrounds you (the sights, the sounds, the noises, the colors, the temperature) instead of letting your mind and thoughts wander is a tremendously effective way to help connect to the present moment, and be more aware and mindful of the world around you.
And your mindful walk doesn’t have to be long, just 5 or 10 minutes is already enough to be more present.
5. Create a daily mindful ritual
Creating a daily mindful ritual is such a nice way to be more present while helping you return to yourself. This is a time when you let go of the day and prioritize yourself.
Personally, I like to add my mindful ritual to my evening routine because it always helps me switch off and wind down after the stress of the day, and helps me find that inner peaceful awareness and serenity. Your mindful ritual can consist of any activities or hobbies you enjoy and doesn’t have to be limited to only one. Variety enriches life, after all.
Ideas of mindful rituals:
- Practicing some yoga
- Journaling
- Breathwork
- Artistic outlets like writing, painting, sculpting,
- A warm bath with scented candles
- A cup of your favorite beverage
Tip:
Choose to make art or create something for this is great because you have to be focused and pay attention to what you are doing, but in a distinct way that nourishes your soul.
6. Disconnect from technology
Disconnecting from technology works like magic to help you be more present. With so much of our time spent in front of screens, our minds are too focused on what’s going on there, and disconnected from what’s directly around us.
So allow yourself the peace of taking a break from your phone or computer or TV, and bring your attention back to yourself and the world directly around you.
Tip:
Turning off your electronics one or two hours before bed is a great way to accomplish this on a regular basis, while taking care of your brain and improving the quality of your sleep (screens emit blue light which interfers with sleep).
7. Journal your thoughts
Journaling is always a good and effective habit to turn your attention back to yourself. But journaling your thoughts and feelings in particular, then reflecting back on them, helps you bring attention to what is going on within you and your mind, both mentally and emotionally. And usually, by the time you’re done with it, you’re left feeling lighter, a bit like you’ve just dumped all your mental clutter out of yourself.
Just like the other habits mentioned above, just 5 minutes is already a great starting point.
8. Meditation
Meditation is a soft and effective way to help you connect to the present moment, and yourself, and doesn’t necessarily require more than 5 minutes if that’s all the free time you have.
The deliberate act of slowing down, sitting in a comfortable position, and shushing the outside world to focus on your breathing and your mind helps you live in the moment as you meditate, and become mindful of the fact that you exist here and now, as you breathe in and out long and deep breaths, and observe your passing thoughts without any judgment.
9. Yoga
Doing some yoga is such a perfect way to slow down and connect to yourself, your body, and your mind at the same time.
Compared to the previous practices, it might be less accessible because it’s not something you can turn to if you need it in the middle of your work day or a meeting, but it’s still an excellent habit to keep.
Your yoga session doesn’t have to be an hour long for you to feel the change. You have to bring your attention to how your body feels, how your mind feels, as you find your balance and focus to move and breathe and flow from one posture to another.
10. Mindful eating
Mindful eating is an excellent way to connect to the present moment, and focus your attention on what you’re doing – in this case, eating.
It’s a simple but wonderful practice that turns eating from a mindless act to a mindful one, where you take your time to enjoy the food you’re nourishing your body with, instead of just rushing your meal. With mindful eating, you really take the time to notice the colors, smell the fragrances, and savor the tastes.
Tip:
Try it with your eyes closed. Really pay attention as you chew slowly and appreciate your food. You’ll notice how much richer and stronger the savors become.
FINAL WORD
So that’s it. These are 10 simple habits to help you be more present in your everyday life. All of these little habits are easy to sneak into your self-care routine and daily life. They are simple yet powerful ways to help you connect to the present moment.
Developing the habit of becoming more present and mindful doesn’t require much time and effort, just the regular practice of little habits such as these to help your attention anchor on yourself and your surroundings. A consistent practice will train your brain to be present and focused on the here and now more easily.
So that’s it.
What about you? What do you do that helps you be more present and connected? Please, share your tips and ideas in the comments.
I hope you have a nice and comfortable day. Don’t forget to be kind and take care of yourself. You deserve it.