5 Tips to Be More Present When Meeting Others

Being more present, or being mindful in the moment, has many positive connotations. It sounds like a really valuable thing, but what does it really mean? Does it mean being mindful of everything that's around you, or being mindful of one's breathing?

I'm not the most active person in the room, and I certainly am not someone who breathes well. When I speak to others, however, I am not only better prepared to make good conversation, I'm doing much better overall.

What does it mean to be mindful of the moment?

In his book "Who's Your monitored? A Practical Guide to Fostering Inner Calm and Harmony", Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi offers this definition:

"Being mindful is being fully in the present, engaging in the moment, living in the moment rather than Hussein - resignation."

He says that it is the state of being able to experience and interact fully: to be fully engaged in, and to enjoy the positive moments of our lives.

He offers these five tips to being more present:

1. Be mindful of your posture. This is very much about what happens to you when you're standing in a room, whether you're alone or with others. Your body language, your position of shoulders, your use of language all reflect the amount of presence you exude. And when you are mindful of your own physical state, the room or your conversation, you have more control over that state: you can change your body language, you can change your presence, and you can manage your state.

2. Be mindful of your vocal tone. Your words, your tonality, your voice pitch, and the speed at which you speak all reflect how fully you are present in the moment. When you are mindful of your 'presence' you are less likely to 'mblam' ( aspiration, peer-to-peer movements of the mumble, voicelike speaking slurred in it) or use sustained speech patterns ( depressing the lowercase letters in the words).

3. Be mindful of your facial expression, your eye- contacts, and your interaction to other people and to the environment. Each of these acts to engage with a different group depending on their interaction to the situation at hand. Marketing experts refer to this light interaction as the "read" or rejection (or rejection) of the product or the final image of the marketing campaign. For a more in depth look, check out the research conducted by Robert Simpson, in his bookThe Social Psychology of Marketing.

4. Be mindful of your tone of voice. This accomplishes the same affect as your posture. Your tone of voice involves your pitch (the timbre of your voice) and your speed of speech. And it reflects your emotional mind where fear, stress, remorse, repentance is prominent. To be mindful of your tone of voice takes you past what that means to you in the moment into a bigger picture. Not only does it reflect your ' matt professionalism' (or lack thereof) it also represents your emotional mind.

5. Be mindful of your body language. Whether its acting serious or playful, the way you stand, if you're slouched, or if you're proJackie, or if you're looking forward to the discussion or avoiding, these all reflect your intentions or your fears at the moment. Again, knowing and observing your reactions can teach you. And while this is a good tip, it is not wholly informative - it does not go deep enough.

6. Be mindful of your breathing. Always en empathetic of your breathing will help you be more mindful of your own.

Want to learn more about Mindfulness? Check out these online courses!

Learn to Create a Daily Meditation Practice

Mindfulness in a Digital Age

Being present in the moment can be a tricky thing. When you are focused on making the best possible first impression, or knowing how a conversation will go, or trying to remember what you were supposed to say next, it's easy to forget that you have the present now. It's easy to forget that what's happening is happening now and that you have the opportunity to take advantage of it. It's easy to forget that you can breathe and smile, that you can talk to whoever is in front of you, and that you can give them your full attention. But being present - being mindful - is something that can be used to your advantage. By paying attention to what's going on around you and in your life, you can make the most of any situation. It can help you appreciate the little things, like how much better your life will be when you actually find the time to take a walk outside or sit down with a friend for a cup of coffee rather than on the phone. And it can help you discover new things about yourself that you never knew existed.