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Mindfulness is rooting yourself in the present moment, without judging the thoughts that pass through your mind.Now, many of us associate mindfulness with meditation. But we don’t necessarily have to meditate to be mindful.
Many of our daily acts can become mindful acts. Mindful writing is one such activity, as are mindful eating, mindful walking, and mindful nature-viewing.
Writing mindfully over time can help you think more deeply about yourself, helping you become more self-aware. Which, then, helps you become the best version of yourself.
“Be happy in the moment, that’s enough. Each moment is all we need, not more.” — Mother Teresa
How To Start A Mindful Writing Habit
1. Write Raw About The Present Moments
Take a seat at your desk and chair with a pen and a notepad. Try to avoid using your laptop or mobile for this, as they are teeming with interrupting notifications and distracting ideas.
A pen and paper block you from mindlessly scrolling on your phone or opening a background tab on your computer. Physically writing keeps you rooted in the present moment.
Leave your phone switched off and your laptop shut, or keep them in another room.
Find a piece of paper and a pen, and start writing whatever is on your mind. After repeating this “brain dump” for a few days, you start writing more meaningfully about the events of your day.
Before you start, sit upright, close your eyes, and take 5-6 slow and deep breaths. It will help clear your mind of worries and calm your mind via your vagus nerve.
Start writing about your sensations. Write about the sounds you are hearing, the sort of temperature you are feeling, and the smells that surround you.
Take a moment after every paragraph to inhale a slow, deep breath and exhale it softly. Tell yourself, “I let go of my stress.”
You might feel your mind wandering off from time to time. Do not worry; it’s natural. Take 1-2 deep breaths to ground yourself back in the present, and re-focus on writing.
2. The Letter To Future Self Exercise
The Letter to Future Self exercise is when you write a letter to your future self — six months or a year in the future.
- The letter should address questions about your current self, including their happiness, goals, struggles, and what brings them joy.
- Reflect on the future self, focus on your desired goals, accomplishments, and what milestones will bring you happiness. This includes acknowledging past stressors that no longer hold weight.
- Celebrate the good. Conclude with a reminder of the wonderful aspects of your life — your hobbies, relationships, and sources of joy. This will serve as a reminder to appreciate the positive aspects of your present situation.
Hide the letter — to be revisited after a period of at least six months. It allows for personal growth and perspective on life’s changes.
My suggestion: Make it a December last-week habit.
Put up reminders on your calendar any day during the last week of the year to write this letter to future self.
There’s a web service I use: FutureMe. It has a reminder to write as well as a date alarm to read that future letter on a given date.
Up to 45%of the activities and tasks we do in a day are habitual (Quinn & Wood, 2005). But the thing is, creating a new habit is hard.
So, put that reminder Right now — on your mobile and desktop calendars.
3. Explore New Topics And Styles of Writing
Initially, you may have difficulty finding words to write. For such moments, when you keep staring at a blank paper, here are helpful prompts:
- Highlights of your day (yesterday or today).
- Things you and your friend do together
- How you solved a tough problem.
- Your dos and don’ts for the week.
- Some thoughts that made you smile.
- How you blocked a challenging, unpleasant habit.
- Urges you resisted and felt happy about.
- Events that made you feel productive.
- Actions that made you feel loved.
- Things that brought out your creativity.
- Beautiful sounds that you heard.
- Meaning and purpose of your life.
- Your best/worst meal of the day/week.
- Some calculated risks you took.
- Your idea of a perfect holiday.
- Advice to your younger self.
- Things that melted your heart.
- New habits that you want to build.
- Create a personal slogan or mantra.
There is another way to go about mindful writing. Try different ways of writing while exploring novel topics.
For example, you may write about how your neighbor’s pet dog thinks about you. You might explore writing a two-way dialog between you and a more successful version of yourself.
You may also try Freewriting, a technique developed by Peter Elbow in 1973. In this, you continuously write for a fixed amount of time, ignoring spelling, grammar, and other rules of proper writing.
There’s also Stream of Consciousness writing — a narrative technique aiming to realistically capture a character’s thought process. Its main goal is to provide readers with an intimate and direct insight into a character’s thoughts and feelings, as if they were an unnoticed observer.
This narrative style often includes a detailed portrayal of the character’s internal dialogue, emotions, and sensory experiences. The result is like being a fly on the wall inside the character’s mind, seeing the mental state and the complexities of their inner world.
4. Create Imaginary Stories Out of Real People
Frankly, most of the writing we do daily is writing emails. Moreover, today, much of it comes with incredibly clever auto-suggestions on how to finish our sentences.
So, it may be difficult to write your narratives in detail, especially if you’re not in the habit of writing outside your work.
Mindful writing can help you stay in the present moment, while also expanding the awareness of your presence in the universe.
Perhaps the greatest example of this form of journal writing is the transcendent book Meditations by the most powerful emperor to have walked this earth, Emperor Marcus Aurelius.
For this, go to an unfamiliar spot, like a park bench in a unique part of the city or a seat at a popular tea shop, and observe what people are doing around you. Look at their expressions and micro-expressions.
Then make up imaginary stories, creating characters out of the surrounding people. Give them unique voices. Write about their dreams and fantasies, their work problems, and their relationships.
Write about a time in the future when they might meet you and hear your stories about them. The possibilities are endless.
Final Words
As a beginner, start your mindful writing practice with no big aims, especially if you do not write outside your professional sphere.
The best course of action is to take action without waiting for inspiration.
If no words come to your mind, write about the pen or the pencil in your hand, the paper you’re writing on, or the desk below that paper. You’ll soon find the flow appears.
There are people who do not have their breakfast unless they have written 1000 words in the morning. You may start with 100 words.
Try writing mindfully for 100 days and feel the difference.
Of course, you will become a better writer.
You will also become more peaceful in life. Your humdrum life will come alive as you start feeling your emotions more fully.
√ Also Read: Mind-Wandering: How To Stop It + 6 Extra Questions Answered
√ Please spread the word if you found this helpful.
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