I overheard someone recently who said that they didn’t have time to add mindfulness practices into their life. Oh boy!

A busy life is exactly the reason to add mindfulness practices! But I understand this seems counterintuitive.

Have you heard the old Zen story where the student asks the master, “How long should I spend in meditation each day?”

The master answers “one hour per day is fine.”

“One hour per day?! I don’t have time to meditate for an hour every day!” exclaims the student.

The master replies calmly, “well, you should definitely meditate for two hours every day then.”

The meaning here is that if you truly can’t spare the time for meditation, you probably need meditation much more than the average person, therefore you should dedicate even more time to your meditation practice.

Is your modern life so full that you can’t squeeze in a few minutes of quiet? I’m not here to judge - that’s the case for lots of people.

So here are my favourite ways to bring mindful awareness into a jam-packed day.

1. Practice mindful walking.

At least once a day, pay attention to the sensations under your feet when you take steps. Consistency helps. This could be the first few steps you take with bare feet after you get out of the shower. Or sensations as you descend stairs. Or when walk to the printer/to the coffee shop. Try to pick a routine that you do daily, and pay attention to your walking while you’re doing it. That means you’re not talking, looking at your phone, or planning your afternoon - you are simply walking, and paying attention.

Time investment: 10-60 seconds.

2. When you lock your door, pause for five seconds.

Simple! Even if you’re running late, I bet five seconds won’t make a difference in your schedule. Like tip #1 above, we’re tying a moment of mindful awareness to an activity that you’re going to be doing anyway. So whenever you leave the house and turn your key to lock the door, count down from five.

Time investment: 5 seconds.

3. Pause for gratitude before eating.

A practice that spans many cultures, gratitude at the beginning of a meal is a great way to add a little mindfulness into your day. And you don’t need to thank a higher power if that’s not your thing - just pause to acknowledge that you have food to nourish your body with.

This will actually help with digestion too! Taking a pause and a few slower breaths before eating activates your parasympathetic nervous system - that’s the “rest and digest mode.” Taking this little pause - whether you want to just count down from 10 or be grateful for the privilege of having food to eat today - will help your body to better digest and absorb the nutrients from your meal.

*Bonus nervous system tip* : your body will actually tell you when you’re 80% full, if you’re paying attention! When your stomach is nearing its comfortable capacity, you will either sigh or yawn, or feel the urge to pause for a moment. Listen to this message if you don’t like feeling over-full!

Mindful eating is worth a try, especially if you ever have digestion issues.

If you eat while working, watching TV, walking, or driving, you are ensuring that your nervous system stays in sympathetic activation (fight/flight/get sh*t done mode), which does not support digestion.

Time investment: 5-25 seconds.

4. When you see the colour red, notice your breath.

I love this one!! You can choose a different colour or anything really, but the idea is that we’re gamifying it.

You’ll train yourself to start to look for the colour red, and you’ll get excited to add more mindful moments to your life. If you stick with this one, you will be looking for opportunities to notice your breath all day.

This is my favourite, but any little rule like this will do. Every time you x, take a deeper breath.

Time investment: 5 seconds.

5. Every time you unlock your phone, check in with how you feel.

How many wonderful opportunities will you have to do this one today?

By training yourself to check in, you have the opportunity to exit autopilot mode and maybe even avoid getting sucked into a scroll-hole.

Why am I opening my phone right now?

Am I on autopilot?

Time investment: 10-30 seconds.

Mindfulness is all about doing life on purpose. It’s about shifting from autopilot into awareness, even in the smallest ways. And while it may take a little effort at first, the payoff can be huge – less stress, more clarity, more presence in your daily life.

The best part? You don’t need to carve out any extra time for it. These five micro-practices that fit into your daily routine can really change how you feel.

Why not start today?

Happy noticing!