Begin again

In this short practice, you’ll learn to recognize when the mind has wandered and softly label it as thinking. Each time, you return to the breath and begin again. A steady way to train focus and patience.

Why this helps? Noticing thinking without judgment builds awareness and calm.

Transcript

What Hashtag Thinking Is

Breath As The Anchor

Settle Into Posture

Rest Attention On Breathing

Label Thoughts And Return

Silent Practice And Closing Bell

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hashtag thinking is a mindfulness exercise that will help you develop awareness of thinking. You're going to practice noticing and working with your thoughts so you can understand yourself better. You'll begin by bringing your attention to the breath, following each in-breath and each out breath. And whenever you notice your mind has wandered to a thought, you're going to tag it thinking, and then gently return your attention to the next in-breath. Let's begin by coming into a comfortable sitting posture. With both feet flat on the floor. Notice the sensations of sitting and gravity pulling your weight into the chair. Feel the solidity of the earth beneath you. Bring your attention to your spine and see if you can sit up a little taller. Tuck in your chin and relax your shoulders. Your hands can rest on your thighs, or you can fold them gently in your laptop. Close your eyes if it feels comfortable, or you can just lower your gaze. Sitting quietly in a relaxed way. Now connect to the sensations of breathing wherever you feel the breath most clearly. Resting your attention on each in breath and each out breath. After a few moments, you may notice that your mind is wandered to a thought. It might be a thought about something that happened earlier, or maybe something you have to do later. This is natural. Thinking is what minds do. When you notice a thought, tag it thinking, and then you can let it go as you return to the next in breath, breathing in and breathing out. Keep resting your attention on the breath, noticing when the mind has wandered to a thought and label it thinking, and then gently let it go and return to the next in breath. You're practicing noticing thoughts, tagging them thinking and then letting them go. Thoughts simply coming and going. Do this for another minute in silence until you hear the sound of the bell, and then follow the tone of the bell until you can't hear it anymore, and then you can open your eyes.