The Practicing Mind: Bringing Discipline and Focus Into Your Life

A parent’s behavior goes a long way toward manifesting a sense of what works and what doesn’t in a child’s mind. Actions definitely speak louder than words. When I have a difficult day with work, if I feel the experience will help my kids see how I coped with a situation, I will pass it on when I feel they are ripe for the knowledge. If I am under

The word “practice” implies the presence of awareness and will. The word learning does not. When we “practice” something we are involved in the deliberate repetition of a process with the intention of reaching a specific goal. The words deliberate and intention are key here because they define the difference between practicing something and just le

and you can’t argue with their technique because, for many years, they dominated the sport. However, go to any of our sporting events and nobody is having any fun unless they are winning. That is what we focus on. Our minds are reeling with judgments about where we are in the competition, and we are experiencing all the emotions that come with all

If you shift your goal from the product you are trying to achieve to the process of achieving it, a wonderful phenomenon occurs. All the pressure drops away. This is because, if your goal is to pay attention to only what you are doing right now, then as long as you are doing just that, you are reaching your goal in each and every moment.

This awareness of being where you are and in the present gives you the constant positive reinforcement of reaching your goal over and over again. However, when your mind is only on the finished product, you not only feel frustrated in every second that you have not met that goal, but you experience anxiety in every "mistake" you make whil

Credit cards work on the premise of product before process instead of process first. This mentality only leads to a general sense of non-fulfillment and emptiness. We have all experienced a situation where we wanted something very much but didn't have the money for it, so we charged it. The fulfillment from attaining the object is usually gone long

Working on a piano is repetitious, tedious and monotonous to say the least. Everything you do to the instrument you must do at least 88 times. This forces you to let go of anything but the most practical and efficient attitude toward the daily work that faces you in the shop and on the stage. If you do not possess at least a minimal level of discip

We need to be more aware of what we are doing, what we are thinking, and what we are intending to accomplish in order to be more in control of what we are experiencing in life.

What I have found is that the only difference between the two activities is that we have pre-judged them. We have made a conscious decision that if we enjoy an activity it is not work. We must temporarily suspend our definition of work as referring to our daily vocation. “Work” in this discussion refers to any activity we don’t feel like doing, and

Kids basically want a sense of security, lots of free time and experiences that are fun and free from stress. Are adults any different in this regard?