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In The Mindful People Series, we interview people from different walks of life and get them to share their mindfulness experience, as well as how learning and practicing mindfulness have made a difference to their personal and professional lives.  MiMo: How did you get into learning and practicing mindfulness? OCY: I knew about meditation way back but the very first time I got to know about mindfulness was when Erin and I had a discussion about Vipassana Meditation. MiMo: Tell us about your experience in the MBSR program. OCY: I enrolled in the MBSR program in August 2015 in Singapore. The 8-week program was fulfilling and experiential. I could put all the teachings and principles of mindfulness into action and apply them in my daily practice. The biggest challenge was to commit to a scheduled slot of time every day for mindfulness practice - without giving myself any convenient excuses! MiMo: How has mindfulness contributed to your personal well-being? OCY: I feel my personal well-being has improved tremendously since I began practicing mindfulness from moment to moment in my everyday life. I feel more grounded in the here and now, rather than worry too much about the future and regret the things I've done or have not achieved in the past. Whenever I get anxious, I will just try to stop thinking negatively and start breathing. Breathing in and I know I am breathing in. Breathing out and I know I am breathing out. When I am paying attention to my breath, I am able to keep my mind calm to work with the challenges I encounter in life. MiMo: How has mindfulness supported you in your professional work? OCY: As an educator and coach, mindfulness has helped me manage my level of stress in education management as well as more effectively coach my core team in 1-to-1 digital teaching and learning - a relatively new area of curriculum integration which many teachers are still getting used to. I practice deep, mindful listening when I have dialogues with my colleagues and the young learners in school; I find that I am more compassionate when dealing with the problems or difficult situations that my team members have to face; and most importantly, I am always aware of my emotions and energy in different work scenarios - this has been especially helpful for me in managing my stress levels. MiMo: How have you incorporated mindfulness into your daily life? OCY: I meditate and do the body scan practice twice a day, and I schedule a mindful swim of about 20 minutes every day. Whenever I am walking, I will remind myself to walk mindfully - Singaporeans tend to walk quite fast due to our more stressful pace of life, and I have found that it takes practice to remain mindful when we are walking at a faster speed! MiMo: Any words of advice for people who are thinking about learning mindfulness? OCY: Mindfulness is a liberation of the soul and a lifelong skill that every human being should acquire. It will help you discover your true authentic self, I promise. And I personally feel that mindfulness training is much needed in the education field, especially for our teachers, because of the heavy responsibilities we have in nurturing the future generations of Singapore. I believe that only mindful teachers can nurture and develop mindful learners. I strongly encourage teachers, principals and even students to learn and practice mindfulness. --- About Ooi Ching Ya A former trainer at the Ministry of Education Singapore and key founding member of the School of Science and Technology Singapore (SST), Ching Ya is currently Special Advisor to the Principal at RDFZ XISHAN SCHOOL in Beijing China. As a strategic consultant who bridges the educational development between Singapore and China, Ching Ya is focusing her contributions on international relations, branding, as well as lifelong learning in global digital education. She is passionate about showcasing how technology can support the rich interactions and connections across life. In 2015, Ching Ya was selected to sit on Apple Inc's ADE Regional Advisory Board for Asia-Pacific, and is responsible for the professional development of Apple Distinguished Educators in individualized digital teaching and learning. Are you a mindfulness practitioner or do you know one who would like to share their mindfulness experience on the MiMo blog? Do drop us a message!
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In The Mindful People Series, we interview people from different walks of life and get them to share their mindfulness experience, as well as how learning and practicing mindfulness have made a difference to their personal and professional lives.  Naturopath Tiffany Wee tells us about the role of mindfulness in her life. How did you get into learning and practicing mindfulness? I regularly practice meditation but first came across the term mindfulness when I read Thich Nhat Hanh’s books. In 2015, I was able to put mindfulness into practice when I visited Thay’s Plum Village in the south of France. This experience spurred my interest in this all-embracing method of stilling the mind. Tell us about your experience in the MBSR program. I had initially signed up for MBSR as it was a pre-requisite for my teacher training in Mindful Eating, and was not expecting much since I am no stranger to meditation. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find how “liberating” this particular practice was – to put it simply, you can’t go wrong. One aspect of MBSR that appealed to me was that it was non-judgmental and validated everything I experienced and felt, even “negative” thoughts and emotions. How has mindfulness contributed to your personal well-being? I tend to be very critical of myself. Using mindfulness as a skill, whenever self-defeating thoughts arose, instead of refuting them, I learnt to develop a curiosity around them. By accepting and thoroughly exploring my own imperfections, I developed compassion for myself, and by extension, those around me. How has mindfulness supported you in your professional work? As a naturopath and teacher of mindful eating, commitment to a personal practice is critical in so many ways. Being present improves my communication skills and allows me to meet my clients and students fully to absorb their true intent. Mindfulness has also helped to increase my sense of self-awareness, compassion, and introspection – qualities that are important to cultivate for both work and life as they are foundational to building positive relationships. How have you incorporated mindfulness into your daily life? Mindfulness in its true essence is not meant to be a 30-minute exercise that we do and then put aside for the rest of the day. Through practice, I now intersperse the day with mindful moments – from simple tasks like taking a shower or brushing my teeth to periods of commute and even at work. Instead of reacting to situations, I now have the capacity to pause and through a quick 3-minute breathing practice, respond appropriately in times of stress. Mindfulness lets us live our lives more fully, in the present moment. Any words of advice for people who are thinking about learning mindfulness? Go for it! It is going to be one of the best acts of self-mastery and self-love that you can invest in. Whether it is to boost your productivity and focus, or improve your ability to manage stress and build interpersonal relationships, you will be surprised how far-reaching the benefits of mindfulness can be. --- About Tiffany Wee Naturopath, Nutritionist, Herbalist, Mindful Eating, Reiki Born in Singapore and trained in Australia, Tiffany has consulted in world-renowned health establishments like Chiva Som, ESPA and Balanced Living. She is recognised by her clients for her warmth, efficiency and expertise in helping them achieve their individual health potential. Tiffany is also the first in Asia to offer UCSD’s Mindful Eating course. Are you a mindfulness practitioner or do you know one who would like to share their mindfulness experience on the MiMo blog? Do drop us a message!
 MiMo Contributor: Dawn is a passionate educator with 17 years of experience spanning the communication and education industry. Starting her career as a public prosecutor, she joined the media industry and garnered experience in writing and editing corporate reports, speeches, press releases, e-newsletters and other corporate publications. Since then, she has transitioned to being an edutainer (aspiring to educate while entertaining in doses) and lectured at various tertiary institutions. An avid learner, she has now moved into coaching and counselling and looks forward the next chapter of her journey of learning and unlearning. The Initial AssumptionsWhen I first heard about the practice of mindfulness, I was rather surprised to hear that it has gained much currency in the past few years. I was even more intrigued to discover that there were increasingly more academic disciplines offered for practitioners. After all, is mindfulness not a basic form of etiquette that we have been socialised into accepting and practising for the longest time? This was where I realised something. I confused being ‘mindful’ with the act of ‘minding’, where I use my intellect to consider, reason and ‘mind’ my business for the latter. I also associated it with keeping others around me in ‘mind’ - extending consideration to them. While all these thoughts and actions are perfectly fine and commonplace, the one aspect that I neglected about ‘mindfulness’ was how I could extend consideration to myself and how that could really help in some of my challenges. A Taste of Mindful MomentsI had absolutely no expectations when I attended the information sharing session about mindfulness conducted by Erin on 9 Jan 2016. This was useful in keeping an open mind and gleaning three key takeaways from the session. 1. Mindfulness is not tangible, but the results of practising mindfulness are. During the session, Erin invited us to participate in a short activity to fully experience the sights and senses of tasting a fruit. That felt like the longest three minutes of my life and I was ready to explode with impatience. Why should eating a fruit even be so cumbersome? Then I realised that I chose to slow down midway and not fight my urges to accelerate the simple process. Strangely, I was able to feel calmer after this activity. All that took place within me was not tangible and only known to me. But it was a poignant reminder to not be afraid to go slow and take stock of things around us. 2. It takes effort (and some pain) to be mindful: This is about taking steps to coach my mind to resist reacting with familiar means. Instead, I believe in working to modify the response. Whenever I feel the urge for something to be done immediately, I recall the song ‘Right Here, Right Now’ by Fatboy Slim. While I do enjoy the beat of the song, it never fails increase my stress levels since we live in a world when everybody demands things instantly. Hence, there is pain when I make intentional efforts to practise mindfulness and slow down. Naturally, I do not recommend applying this to time sensitive work situations but more on a personal front for a start. Nonetheless, there is immense value in practising mindfulness at work when making choices that are triggered by perceived stressors. 3. Can I afford to not be mindful? The short answer is both ‘Yes and No’ since we always have options. Having said that, I do not believe that I can afford to not be mindful. This is especially so given my personality, profession and passion for life. As an educator, communications practitioner and coach, even my best intentions for individuals will be met with challenges. Mindfulness helps me increase my empathy, full-heartedly. It also helps me to choose to reduce the tendency to internalise the problems of my clients. Most importantly, it facilitates my ability to separate thoughts from truths. This was the most precious and empowering reminder I walked away with from the session. As of now, I am fully mindful that this journey will not be easy but it will be worthwhile. If you are a mindfulness practitioner or have meaningful experiences or thoughts about mindfulness to share, please contact Erin to find out more.
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About The AuthorMiMo founder Erin Lee is a Mindfulness Coach and MBSR Teacher at Mindful Moments, and advocate of mindfulness as the way of life. She conducts the classic 8-Week MBSR Program, as well as the 8-Week MBSR Workplace Program. 
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ContributeAre you a mindfulness practitioner and have meaningful experiences or thoughts about mindfulness that you'd like to share? You can contribute an article on the MiMo blog! Please contact Erin to find out more.
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