“The little things? The little moments? They aren’t little.” — Jon Kabat-Zinn
Since I have been practicing mindfulness these past couple of years, I have become more and more aware of when I am multitasking. For example, there is an elevator in our apartment building that I often take. It is very easy to use the time waiting for and riding in the elevator for checking my cell phone for messages and other kinds of information. What has dawned on me is that when I am checking my cell phone and riding in the elevator, I am not really doing either one. My attention is divided.
To work on this tendency my strategy these days is to practice mindful elevator riding. I put my cell phone away in my pocket. And I just stand there breathing being mindful of riding in the elevator. This has become a wonderful experience that I look forward to, rather than just a tedious way to get from point A to point B.
I am wondering if multitasking is really all that it is cracked up to be. Do we really get more done when we multitask? I question that. And I do know that when I mindfully do just one thing at a time I experience more focus and peacefulness. I enjoy that one task even more.
I encourage you to think about mindfulness and multitasking. Experiment with doing just one thing at a time mindfully. It can open up pathways to greater enjoyment of the present moment.
~ PR