TM4T Mindfulness - The Integration

This is the stage in which you incorporate all the calm and clarity (which you have developed during meditation) into the rest of your busy life. This is kind-of-important: there is no point in having ten happy minutes of tranquillity sitting in the gym each day if the rest of your life is a chaotic hell.

The principle, though, is clear: if you can do it squatting in the gym, then you can do it eating in the canteen, or sitting in a meeting, or standing in front of a class. This doesn't mean standing there with your eyes closed muttering to yourself, it just means bringing the same sense of being present, focused and aware to your everyday activities. So, instead of daydreaming about half-term or worrying about the next staff meeting, you are fully present in the classroom, and notice the sounds, smells and sights all around you.

Whenever you have a moment during your day, pause briefly in what you are doing, and check-in with how you're feeling: physically, mentally, and emotionally - these check-ins are called points of awareness.  Try to mentally link these check-ins together, like joining dots together to make a line. Each of these small individual points of awareness contribute to an overall sense of being calmer, more peaceful, and more focused.