Mindfulness with Jon Kabat-Zinn

Caption notes

In this Google workshop published in 2007, Jon Kabat-Zinn presents mindfulness as a practice of relating to present experience rather than attaining an ideal state. He distinguishes doing from being present, then guides attention from sensations of breathing to the body, sounds, thoughts and emotions. When attention wanders, the emphasis is noticing that it has wandered rather than forcibly shutting down thinking. Questions address falling asleep, continual commentary on one’s performance, and attitudes toward preferences and ethics. Alongside not blaming oneself, he explicitly says to sleep when sleep is needed. This guide describes his concepts, guidance and discussion of participants’ experiences. Medical, neuroscience and workplace-effect claims are not treated as verified benefits, and the talk is not used to recommend reducing sleep. Practice pauses, bell sounds and participants’ actual experiences have not been independently checked audiovisually.