Being mindful means drawing your awareness and attention to the present moment, observing your thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations as they happen, without trying to analyze or correct. It involves getting quiet and curious so that you can notice what’s happening in your inner and external environments without letting your mind get carried away by anxieties about the future or regret about the past. Mindfulness gives us tools to calm down. When we are calm in our bodies, we are calm in our minds and can make well-balanced choices more easily. Evidence shows that mindfulness practices such as meditation, focused breathing, and yoga activate and strengthen our ability to pay attention, regulate our emotions, and make better choices. The more we practice mindfulness, the more we strengthen these abilities.