Be More Mindful Without Meditating
For anyone who has tried meditation, could not stick with it and still wants to be more present.
You can be more mindful without meditating by giving full attention to ordinary moments: putting your phone down in conversations, doing one thing at a time, noticing your senses during routine tasks, taking a few slow breaths between activities and pausing before you react. Mindfulness is simply paying attention to what is happening right now. You can practice it while walking, eating, listening or driving.
My dad passed away suddenly while my family was on a trip. In my book, I wrote about what that taught me about the moments we rush through.
It’s strange how quickly your mind starts replaying ordinary moments once you realize there won’t be another one.
I’ve felt that in simple moments, too, sitting across from someone, putting my phone down, and just listening. You can see it when someone realizes you’re actually present. Their shoulders drop. Their voice changes. They open up.
What will remain are the relationships. The kind of husband I was. The kind of father I was. The friend, leader, and person I chose to be.
Most of us are somewhere else a lot of the time. In a well-known study published in Science, Harvard researchers Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert found that people’s minds were wandering about 47 percent of the time, and that people were generally less happy when their minds wandered than when they were focused on what they were doing.
You do not need a cushion or an app. You need to be where you already are.
Seven ways to be more mindful without meditating
Put the phone down in conversations
When someone is talking to you, put the phone away and look at them. People can feel the difference.
Do one thing at a time
Eat without scrolling. Walk without a podcast once in a while. Let one activity have all of you.
Use your senses
During a routine task, notice three things you can see, hear or feel. It pulls you back into the moment.
Take three slow breaths between tasks
Before a meeting, after a call or when you walk in the door, pause for three slow breaths.
Pause before you react
When something frustrates you, wait a beat before you answer. That pause is mindfulness in action.
Turn routines into anchors
Use daily moments like your first coffee or your drive home as cues to notice where you are and how you feel.
Notice the ordinary
The school drop-off, the walk with the dog, dinner at home. These are the moments you will want back someday.
Being present isn’t something I’ll regret.
Missing moments with the people I love is.
Everyday moments to practice mindfulness
- 1. Your first sip of coffee in the morning
- 2. Walking from the car to the office
- 3. Washing dishes or folding laundry
- 4. Listening to your kids talk about their day
- 5. The first few minutes after you get home
Related reading: Present vs Available, Why Multitasking Is Costing You and How to Be More Present With Your Family.
In the media: Mass News featured my take on why ordinary days decide where you end up.
Common questions
Can you be mindful without meditating?
Yes. Mindfulness is paying attention to the present moment, and you can practice it during everyday activities like walking, eating and listening.
What is the easiest way to practice mindfulness?
Put your phone away in conversations, do one thing at a time and take a few slow breaths between activities.
How often does the mind wander?
In a study by Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert, people’s minds were wandering about 47 percent of the time.
Does mindfulness really make a difference?
Research suggests people tend to be happier when they are focused on what they are doing rather than letting their minds wander.
Put the phone down, do one thing at a time, use your senses, pause before you react and notice the ordinary moments.
You Are Capable
of More.
Ten principles for becoming the person you know you are capable of being, built from real stories of people who doubted themselves and did it anyway. Winner of the How-To category at the 2026 Paris Book Festival.
When I’ve got something worth sending.
Just a story or an idea I picked up that I think will help you.
Sometimes that’s twice in a month. Sometimes it’s not for a while.