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I don't really meditate, but one thing I've found helpful is to make it a point to not purposefully distract myself from mindful thought. The truth is that we

I don't really meditate, but one thing I've found helpful is to make it a point to not purposefully distract myself from mindful thought. The truth is that we all have plenty of time for mindful thinking, even if we don't actually set aside time to sit with eyes closed in a "meditation" state. Think about how much time is spent just sitting on a train, or in line doing nothing. The instant impulse most of the time in these types of situations is to pull out your phone and distract yourself from thinking by looking at a web article, or playing a game. I found that by reducing this habit in my life (not completely eliminated or else I wouldn't be commenting here) I had much more time for mindful thinking in my normal day to day life. Another way to get started is to go on a long walk without headphones. Maybe even leave your phone at home. A year or so ago I was working through some shit and found it extremely helpful to take long walks on a trail that I loved with no electronics at all. That time spent free from distractions allowed me to develop introspection that was extremely useful and therapeutic.

vidarh 12y ago
I don't doubt that this is useful to you, but the phrase "mindful thinking" makes me wonder what exactly you mean. "Mindfulness" as used in insight/mindfulness meditation / vipassana and similar schools of mediation does not refers to thinking about something. Rather it refers to detached but focused observation (though you may observe your thoughts). The point is to instead of "following a train of thought", to get off it and watch it closely from the sideline, and let each train disappear into the distance. What your use of "mindful thinking" sounds like to me (and I might be wrong and you may be thinking of exactly what mindfulness meditation tends to refer to), is focused attention on a train of thought. That's important too, but very, very different. From the sounds of it you are certainly practising your concentration and willpower, and that is certainly valuable in itself, and if whatever you're doing works for you of course you should keep doing it. But I'd like to suggst an experiment: Try to "detach" from your train of thought sometime, even if just a minute here and a minute there (a minute can be frustrating enough...). E.g. when out walking, try to purposefully clear your mind and fix your attention on just the path. Try to be present and quietly observe every detail without trying to verbalize any thoughts. Thoughts will pop up and distract you anyway. Just gently nudge them away, or observe them but try not to "follow it up" and just let it dissipate. When you lose focus, and notice (whether 5 seconds later or 10 minutes), just gently nudge your attention back. The "game" is to note when you lose concentration and try to gradually lengthen the time span where you are just present, detached from your thought stream and just observing. As I've heard someone say: it's when you notice you lost concentration you're learning.
- klrkdekira 12y ago
  I think what mentioned by NathanKP is closer towards Samadhi than Vipassana :) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samadhi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samadhi
- drcomputer 12y ago
  It's one way of thinking of what learning is. Some learning just is experience. Simplifying the experience, using the mind, can sometimes make the learning more complex than it needs be. Choosing to make the distinction between the thought stream, the external world, and the observant self is one way to think. It is already on a layer of abstract conceptualization that is more complicated than it need be. I just like letting go of the idea of what everyone else says learning, experiencing, and thinking is, and just let everything flow. That's when I feel most comfortable. When I let go of 'a way I think I should be' and I know instead 'I have always been the way I should be. It feels like a conscious jerk in thought when you remember to stop guiding yourself, and you just know you are already there.
- NathanKP 12y ago
  You are correct, what I am calling "mindful thinking" is not really meditation in the form you are describing, hence why I said in my grandparent post that I don't really meditate. To explain more thoroughly there are two different techniques I make use of: The first is an outward facing approach, where I try to clear my mind of all inner thoughts and focus completely on the external sensations I am experiencing right now. So for example when entering this mode of thought I focus on putting all thoughts and concerns out of my mind and instead focus solely on the sensation of wind blowing on my skin as I'm walking along, or the sound of birds, or the colors of objects around me. It is hard to explain but by focusing in this state it is as if the colors are brighter, the sounds more vivid, basically all sensations enhanced as I am paying attention more closely with full focus. It is as if the world was a YouTube video playing at 240p and suddenly it switched to an HD stream. The result is an intense feeling of satisfaction in my existence and place in reality. The other technique I use is to focus entirely inward on identifying what I am feeling or thinking right now. In this state of self awareness I focus on acknowledging and identifying my inner feelings objectively and thinking deeply about where they are coming from, whether they are coming from opinions unsubstantiated by fact, or whether they are rational, etc. I find it helpful to imagine my inner emotions as if they were someone else's so that I can properly see them in the right scope. This is especially useful for dealing with feelings of anger, frustration, or stress. This technique is the exact opposite of the first in that I could walk a couple miles and not really notice anything around me because of the internal focus I had. Both techniques are similar in that they put away all non essential distractions, and non productive thought in favor of enhanced focus on the here and now and my own existence and place in reality. However, the first is focused on where I am externally, while the second is focused on what I am internally. At any rate, I find that both techniques are useful to avoid getting wrapped up in a distracted state of non-awareness of self and the real world. I feel that especially working in tech it is easy to become so focused on computer code, and/or distracted by the dopamine triggers from Instagram, Reddit, Netflix, video games, and other distractions that you never stop to think through your own internal thoughts, or fully experience the reality around you. But by spending time each day to focus on regrounding myself in both my true external reality, and my true internal state it helps me to keep these outside distractions from taking over my life completely and causing me to waste my life on nonessential things that in my opinion don't bring true happiness, just distraction from unhappiness.

vidarh 12y ago

I don't doubt that this is useful to you, but the phrase "mindful thinking" makes me wonder what exactly you mean. "Mindfulness" as used in insight/mindfulness meditation / vipassana and similar schools of mediation does not refers to thinking about something. Rather it refers to detached but focused observation (though you may observe your thoughts). The point is to instead of "following a train of thought", to get off it and watch it closely from the sideline, and let each train disappear into the distance. What your use of "mindful thinking" sounds like to me (and I might be wrong and you may be thinking of exactly what mindfulness meditation tends to refer to), is focused attention on a train of thought. That's important too, but very, very different. From the sounds of it you are certainly practising your concentration and willpower, and that is certainly valuable in itself, and if whatever you're doing works for you of course you should keep doing it. But I'd like to suggst an experiment: Try to "detach" from your train of thought sometime, even if just a minute here and a minute there (a minute can be frustrating enough...). E.g. when out walking, try to purposefully clear your mind and fix your attention on just the path. Try to be present and quietly observe every detail without trying to verbalize any thoughts. Thoughts will pop up and distract you anyway. Just gently nudge them away, or observe them but try not to "follow it up" and just let it dissipate. When you lose focus, and notice (whether 5 seconds later or 10 minutes), just gently nudge your attention back. The "game" is to note when you lose concentration and try to gradually lengthen the time span where you are just present, detached from your thought stream and just observing. As I've heard someone say: it's when you notice you lost concentration you're learning.

klrkdekira 12y ago
I think what mentioned by NathanKP is closer towards Samadhi than Vipassana :) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samadhi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samadhi
drcomputer 12y ago
It's one way of thinking of what learning is. Some learning just is experience. Simplifying the experience, using the mind, can sometimes make the learning more complex than it needs be. Choosing to make the distinction between the thought stream, the external world, and the observant self is one way to think. It is already on a layer of abstract conceptualization that is more complicated than it need be. I just like letting go of the idea of what everyone else says learning, experiencing, and thinking is, and just let everything flow. That's when I feel most comfortable. When I let go of 'a way I think I should be' and I know instead 'I have always been the way I should be. It feels like a conscious jerk in thought when you remember to stop guiding yourself, and you just know you are already there.
NathanKP 12y ago
You are correct, what I am calling "mindful thinking" is not really meditation in the form you are describing, hence why I said in my grandparent post that I don't really meditate. To explain more thoroughly there are two different techniques I make use of: The first is an outward facing approach, where I try to clear my mind of all inner thoughts and focus completely on the external sensations I am experiencing right now. So for example when entering this mode of thought I focus on putting all thoughts and concerns out of my mind and instead focus solely on the sensation of wind blowing on my skin as I'm walking along, or the sound of birds, or the colors of objects around me. It is hard to explain but by focusing in this state it is as if the colors are brighter, the sounds more vivid, basically all sensations enhanced as I am paying attention more closely with full focus. It is as if the world was a YouTube video playing at 240p and suddenly it switched to an HD stream. The result is an intense feeling of satisfaction in my existence and place in reality. The other technique I use is to focus entirely inward on identifying what I am feeling or thinking right now. In this state of self awareness I focus on acknowledging and identifying my inner feelings objectively and thinking deeply about where they are coming from, whether they are coming from opinions unsubstantiated by fact, or whether they are rational, etc. I find it helpful to imagine my inner emotions as if they were someone else's so that I can properly see them in the right scope. This is especially useful for dealing with feelings of anger, frustration, or stress. This technique is the exact opposite of the first in that I could walk a couple miles and not really notice anything around me because of the internal focus I had. Both techniques are similar in that they put away all non essential distractions, and non productive thought in favor of enhanced focus on the here and now and my own existence and place in reality. However, the first is focused on where I am externally, while the second is focused on what I am internally. At any rate, I find that both techniques are useful to avoid getting wrapped up in a distracted state of non-awareness of self and the real world. I feel that especially working in tech it is easy to become so focused on computer code, and/or distracted by the dopamine triggers from Instagram, Reddit, Netflix, video games, and other distractions that you never stop to think through your own internal thoughts, or fully experience the reality around you. But by spending time each day to focus on regrounding myself in both my true external reality, and my true internal state it helps me to keep these outside distractions from taking over my life completely and causing me to waste my life on nonessential things that in my opinion don't bring true happiness, just distraction from unhappiness.