Ever feel like you’re just running through life on autopilot? You’re not alone. It’s hard to live in the moment, especially when there’s more and more distractions at our fingertips. We have to make a conscious effort to live in the moment; in fact, that’s what mindfulnessย is. Per the request of an Uncustomary Babe, I’ve made a list of 50 Ways To Live In The Moment, and I hope you find some mindful, relaxing, fun inspiration in it.

50 Ways To Live In The Moment | Uncustomary

50 Ways To Live In The Moment

1. Don’t check clocks or just get rid of them, at least temporarily (put your phone away, don’t wear your watch, unset the microwave)
2. Blow bubbles out of the window of a car (not the driver’s seat, please!)
3. Take a walk, but move your body/do everything twice as slow as normal
4. Put your phone away, not just to not check the time, but to unplug for a bit
5. Do your activities in color theme, like eat only red foods, wear only green from head to toe, etc.
6. Immerse yourself in water, whether it’s dunking yourself in a lake or pool, running through a sprinkler, standing under one of those mist spray tents, wading in a stream, or just dipping your toes in the ocean as the waves crash on the shore
7. Practice mindful eating (here’s 11 ways to start)
8. Get lost on purpose
9. Meditate or do a guided imagery
10. Go to a fabric store and run your fingers over each type of textile
11. Write this new mantra down and/or say it out loud, “Il bel far niente” which means “The beauty of doing nothing” in Italian
12. Break out into a sing-a-long
13. Savor the feeling of taking off your bra or shoes at the end of a long day
14. Go through all five of your main senses and list as many things as you can of what you’re experiencing with each of them in this present moment
15. “Om”, scream, or wolf howl at the moon
16. Go a day without communicative technology
17. Declutter your living/working space
18. Practice the art of not overanalyzing and when the desire to worry about something arises breathe deeply and distract yourself
19. Get yourself a mindfulness totem or designate something as a reminder/trigger so whenever you see it you know to check in with your body and be mindful in that moment
20. Say something as soon as you wake up, specifically something about what you’re grateful for or a welcome to this new day
21. Lay under the stars
22. Stretch your muscles or practice yoga, even if it’s laying still and breathing deeply and consciously
23. Collect smooth stones and then go to a body of water to skip them
24. Take a different way home
25. Sign up for my free e-course on mindfulness

Free 12 Day E-Course On Mindfulness

 

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50 Ways To Live In The Moment | Uncustomary

26. Swing on a swing set or tire swing
27. Watch a sunrise or sunset
28. Stack rocks as high as you can (and let someone know you’ve been there)
29. Participate in a drum circle and feel the vibrations run through your body
30. Read Keri Smith’s book on The Wanderer’s Society (or do your own research on it) and join!
31. Kiss someone with no intent of it leading any further
32. Be weird in public on purpose with no shame
33. Bake creme brulee just to crack the top with a spoon
34. Twirly outside in a billowy skirt/dress
35. Allow yourself to not be busy when you have a break and simply be
36. Sit in a field and tie your own flower crown together
37. Set up a fantastic bubble bath with all the fixins
38. Challenge yourself to be silent for an entire day
39. Dance around a bonfire
40. Mix up a routine, like try doing something backwards
41. Lay on your back in a pool (at night)
42. Slowly blow serpentine out of it’s pack into a giant coil onto the floor
43. Close your eyes to smell the inside of a bakery
44. Say affirmations out loud to yourself
45. Watch LED lights rotate while doing nothing else
46. Be around flowers as much as possible (buy them, go to a meadow, visit a botanical garden)
47. Pop bubble wrap as slowly or as quickly as feels right to you
48. Change your physical perspective
49. Methodically apply lotion all over your skin
50. Wear break-away pants and break them away dramatically in the middle of a conversation

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How do you like to live in the moment? Share your suggestions in the comments!

Photos: Maura Housley