The world of difference - a phrase I've used in today's video to attempt to begin to explore how far removed the experience of mindfulness is from the normal normal state of mind.

Over the next few week's we'll try to tie down how you can evaluate how present and focused you are - a difficult one, given that, in thinking about how present we are in the moment, we distance ourselves from the moment through thinking! Indeed, often, when clients tell me that they feel less "turned on" during meditation than they did, say, when they were with me, my answer always is that thinking about this kind of thing is just another useless thought! And, yet, we have to explore the qualitative differences between mindlessness and mindfulness.

Mindlessness we already know - it comes in all shapes and sizes: jealousy, distraction, frustration, loss of temper, doubt, self-doubt, stress, worry... the list is simply a compendium of the ups and downs of normal crazy living. Those of us who meditate - or, indeed, do all the other little things (the things that I'm constantly on about in each week's Quick Tip) - know the difference when we calm down, clear our minds and find a moment of complete peace of mind. But is that mindfulness or is that relaxation? And what's the difference.

FIrst of all, I don't want to get hung up on the word mindfulness, it happens to be a scientifically defined state of mind - a definition which is similar to its Buddhist definition. There is no coincidence here, Jon Kabat-Zinn of the University of Massechussets Medical School, whose definition is the gold standard in modern psychology, is a Buddhist... he "borrowed" the definition. But let's not get hung up on that either! Mindfulness is a label that suits our purpose for now - it graphically opposes the normal state of mindlessness. But what is it that you're trying to develop or achieve?

Again, when you meditate, you're not trying to achieve anything - trying splits the mind, it's what blocks achievement. When you meditate you simply do it - just to do it. Mindfulness is the state of mind that emerges when you just meditate. I've used words in today's Quick Tip that give a hint of what the experience of mindfulness feels like... empowered, energized and calmly elated. These words don't describe relaxation as it is normally conceived - these words are something very different. The problem is, they're only words - and, unfortunately, words are not our best means of getting to the heart of what mindfulness is because mindfulness means different things to different people... the question is: how different?

I'm intrigued by what has been coming out of the World Economic Summit at Davos, Switzerland over the last week but not, as you might imagine, by words of wisdom. Let's leave aside the concept itself - that people who awaken each morning with $ signs in their eyes should have anything to contribute other than to their own wealth. Let's not consider the roll-call of the "great and the good" who have gravitated to the Swiss Alps - people who, genuinely, give the great and the good a bad name!

Instead, let's consider the statements by a number of leading "statesmen" - I'm using the term very losely indeed - expressing alarm that politicians who are popular with the electorate should get elected! Being Irish, I'm particularly intrigued by the Irish Prime Minister's contention that the election of parties that are popular with the people would be a disaster for democracy.

Re-read that last sentence, please - and tell me whether or not I'm delusional... I thought that that was what democracy was all about! Oh no, I forgot, the "great and the good" with $ signs in their eyes actually make all the key decisions that effect all the other mere mortals.

Tuesday February 24th, 2015 - Dublin