Mindfulness is a pause, the space between stimulus and response — that’s where choice lies.” — Tara Brach, clinical psychologist

While at work, how often have you reacted without really thinking first — later wondered, “Why did I do that? — or felt handcuffed by a devolving situation?

Mindfulness in policing is an exceptional practice that not only keeps officers safe but also can significantly enhance resilience, stress management, peace and empowerment to consistently serve in the most effective, professional way.

What is conscious awareness in mindfulness?

All officers are familiar with situational awareness — being hyper-vigilant, on guard and aware of your surroundings every moment to identify any potential threats and to aggressively respond to mitigate any danger.

Conscious awareness in mindfulness expands that concept further to include being aware of your purpose in policing beyond your self-interests, doing the greatest good in compassionate and meaningful ways, and making the most of the possibilities presently before you. It involves using conscious intention to make the most of any challenge or opportunity that can benefit you, your agency and others.

It also involves being aware of your emotions, triggers and choosing to have a thoughtful response to situations as they unfold rather than merely instinctively reacting to stress. In mindfulness, conscious awareness is defined as being fully present and aware of one’s experiences in the moment without judgment, which helps prevent you from being swept away in anger or other hijacking emotions while responding more thoughtfully.

Conscious awareness in mindfulness fuses one’s rational mind with their compassionate heart by focusing on the present moment so that the total self works together for your highest good rather than working separately and against your best interests. It naturally aligns one’s intuition and interests with constructive actions.

This conscious awareness helps prevent one from dwelling on a negative experience from the past, being stressed and over-anxious about the future, or feeling helpless or like a victim because it empowers one to do something meaningful and helpful in the present moment.

With this enhanced awareness, it becomes far easier to manage stress, relax, be centered and allow thoughts, stress and emotions to flow through you rather than having them become trapped within your heart and stored as negative energy, frustrations, fears and other distressing emotions that can arise as a result of various triggers.

The practice of shifting consciousness

With a manual car, when you want more from it, you can choose to shift into a higher gear, and as soon as you do, the car accelerates into improved efficiency, power and speed. Similarly, with the practice of mindfulness an officer can thoughtfully choose to shift their conscious awareness into a higher, more integrated and responsive action toward the experience at hand.

This occurs instantaneously through awareness by pausing and simply repeating “shift.” That awareness to shift your consciousness will lift and enable your more thoughtful response. It will lessen the power of low-grade, negative emotions. And it will empower you to perceive your present-moment experience through a wider lens so that you can then respond in a constructive way that is more likely to produce positive outcomes.

Ways conscious awareness improves wellness and resilience

“A healer’s power stems not from any special ability, but from maintaining the courage and awareness to embody and express the universal healing power that every human being naturally possesses.” — Eric Micha’el Leventhal

The practice of conscious awareness can strengthen resilience every day — ideally with every call for service. Fundamentally, resilience is the developed skill to thoughtfully respond to stress and challenge in ways that foster greater coping capacity. Mindful awareness enables you to not merely instinctively react, but to choose to do something good, something helpful and useful in response to a trying experience. It is choosing to use a negative experience as momentum to do something good and meaningful.

Whenever you become aware of dwelling in the past or being anxious about the future; whenever you feel discouraged, frustrated or helpless in a situation or are experiencing emotional pain, tell yourself to “shift” to refocus your attention on the present moment and the good you can do in that moment to produce positive results.

Daily meditation for about 10 minutes is another great way to facilitate greater conscious awareness throughout the day by keeping you more centered, calm and present to respond thoughtfully. It will develop your poise, attentiveness, and concentration so that your choices and responses become more productive with positive results, improved resilience and overall wellness.

Conscious awareness is fundamental

Your conscious awareness is fundamental in realizing a career of fulfillment, peace and well-being. If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude and your response to it while focusing on only what you have the power to control — which is yourself, your attitude, your response to work and life’s challenges.

“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” — Wayne Dryer. If you think a situation or relationship is hopeless and that nothing can improve, then that mindset will naturally work towards making that perception and belief a reality. However, if you believe a situation can improve and that somehow things will change for the better, then that awareness will help manifest that outcome.

Conclusion

The consistent practice of conscious awareness in mindfulness is a powerful tool to be engaged for your benefit, safety, and improved resilience. It will enable you to manage and release stress while making the most of every experience.