Practice Equanimity

The capability to observe what’s happening in any moment - whether physically, mentally or emotionally - without judging it or attaching to it, is a core superpower of mindfulness. It’s particularly useful when we’re in the throes of self-referential, self-critical rumination - or feeling ourselves being caught up in a story or being swept into feelings of impatience, frustration or anger. 

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Consider the experiential difference between standing in the middle of a rainstorm - or watching the storm from behind a window in a safe, warm room. Unconsciously, we live in an emotional rainstorm -

Consciously, we can decide to go inside and simply watch what unfolds. This lifts us out of our stress, and the cycle of unconscious negativity that we’re often struggling against - and it gives us the power to decide what to pay attention to, and what to ignore.   

Equanimity is calm awareness, but not indifference. It is acceptance of things as they are, but not resignation. It is the objectivity to experience the present without our instant, automatic, negativity-biased, emotional reactivity. The more we practice it, the more liberated and happier we feel.