Mindfulness for Lowly Humans: Taming the Drift

Mindfulness for Lowly Humans: Taming the Drift

Maya Jaal—a word given to this beautiful world of ours—means a world full of options. Think about deciding on a car: how many can give an answer in just 5 seconds? Unless you’ve thought about it earlier, it takes time. This is because there are simply too many choices!

It’s not just cars—almost everything confuses us with too many options. I dare say, we are here to get distracted.

Imagine sitting with a cup of tea, dedicating an hour on a presentation for work. Then a voice inside says, “I haven’t paid the credit card bill.” So, you do that, return to work, and another voice reminds you to pick kids up. Then thoughts of their school program, rescheduling meetings, past boss encounters, and imagining future success take over. Suddenly, the hour is gone, and your tea is cold.

How many have sailed this same mind-boat? Our world ‘carries us away’—leaving tasks undone and drawing us from our ‘realized purpose’. Now, pause and ask yourself: if your sailboat steers off with every blow of wind or thought, how can you ever build that multimillion-dollar business empire you’ve been working for? The truth is, the world’s very job is to distract us. Our job—and truly, our only job—is to keep steering toward our chosen shore, no matter how tempting the distractions.

We must keep this sailboat—our mind—steady. The solution is mindfulness: filling our minds only with the purpose we choose. Mindfulness is the compass that helps you arrive at the shore.

• Settle and Breathe: Sit comfortably, close your eyes, take three deep breaths, and focus on the breath’s sensation.
• Engage Fully: Open your eyes and bring full attention to your task. When distracted, gently note it and return focus.
• Practice Stillness: When idle, observe your thoughts without judgment to build awareness and control over the drift.

Let me give you food for thought—what are you distracted from right now?