How To Make Your Home More Mindful

Marcus Aurelius, the great Roman emperor, once said, "He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the Universe."

To achieve harmony with the Universe is an ambitious goal. But as the great emperor stated, it will come in short order once you achieve harmony within yourself. Mindfulness, the psychological process of focusing awareness on the present and acknowledging one’s thoughts and feelings, can be a powerful tool in developing personal harmony.

Your home is where you retire after long days or when you need refuge from the storms outside. It’s just as much a place of protection as it is of rejuvenation. But is your home optimally situated to help you recover, or does it only add to the stress in your life?

You’re probably familiar with the term feng shui, which is a Chinese philosophical system of harmonizing elements of the surrounding environment. Feng shui focuses on architecture in metaphoric terms of "invisible forces" that bind the universe, earth, and humanity together.

Historically, feng shui was used to orient buildings, often spiritually significant structures, in such a manner as to tap into the binding invisible forces of the universe and create harmony.

Whether or not you practice feng shui, there is a powerful tie between your well-being and where you live. Picture your home. What purposes do each of its rooms serve? Eating, cleaning, sleeping, watching television? Do you have a space in your room free of clutter you can escape to in order to unwind or to prepare and plan out your next day?

Our rooms are defined by what we do in them. So, if you’re looking to create a more mindful space, why not dedicate a room or space in your home to being more mindful?

You might have seen pink, hollowed-out salt lamps at a friend’s place or local store. While attractive pieces for any room, these illuminative devices are more than just decorative night lights. Made from pink salt crystals mined from the edge of the Himalayan Mountains, Himalayan salt lamps are said to have several beneficial healing properties.

First, salt is hygroscopic. That means it attracts water molecules from the surrounding environment. As these Himalayan salt rock lamps pull in water, they also capture any contaminants in the room. This helps detoxify the room of unwanted particles and leaves behind a more purified environment, easing allergy and asthma symptoms.

If you’re looking to create a more relaxing living space, an essential oil diffuser should be on your list.

Aromatherapy uses natural oils extracted from flowers, leaves, stems, and other plant parts to improve psychological and physical well-being. The aroma from these natural, essential oils helps to stimulate brain function. Oils can also be absorbed through the skin.

Like Himalayan salt lamps, there are a number of health benefits. Not only will diffusers help purify and dehumidify the air, but they can help your room smell pleasant, boost your mood, repel insects, and ultimately help you de-stress.

Nature has the power to heal, from the sounds and smells to the visuals and open air. And as much as we’d love to spend more time hiking next to trees and walking past waterfalls, we don’t always have that luxury.

With that said, there’s nothing stopping you from bringing the outdoors in. When decorating your home to create a more mindful space, select colors that reflect the outdoors. Soft tones, like white, gray, or beige can help induce a sense of relaxation. Having colors that work well together is not only important aesthetically, but it helps create harmony between your walls, floors, furniture, and other items.

We live in a digital, electrical world. We are constantly connected, attached to many different devices for work and entertainment. And while these tools can help make certain tasks much easier, they can add further clutter and stress to our lives. Not to mention, these devices leave behind electromagnetic radiation that can lead to fatigue, stress, and even weaken your immune system.

Think of it as electrosmog clouding your space. You wouldn’t want to breathe in smog, and you should avoid its electrical counterpart. It’s most likely impossible for you to trash all your devices, but you can certainly limit when and where you use them.

Feng shui teaches that energy can bounce off mirrors and create a spirit of anxiety and restlessness if they aren’t set up properly. Some studies even suggest that too many mirrors can increase your stress level.

Minimalism can exist on a spectrum. There are those who try to clean out their garage every year, those who live entirely waste-free, and there are those who won’t have more than 100 items, refusing to own cars, televisions, or even have careers.

This isn’t to suggest that you should declutter everything in your home, but it certainly is a call to be less dependent on possessions. Ask yourself, "How might my life be better with less?" per The Minimalists, who now have a documentary out about the subject.

Purifying the air and keeping your room decluttered are great steps but incomplete if there’s dirt or grime all over your house.

Take the time to do your dishes, make your bed, wash your clothes, and fold your laundry. Not only will a clean space improve your overall hygiene, it’ll improve your mood. Organization and cleanliness in your space are essential to helping you avoid disharmony. Have you ever looked at a sink full of dishes or an overflowing hamper and felt happy? Probably not.

Becoming more aware of the present and one’s thoughts and feelings doesn’t come by simply cleaning up a few rooms and plugging in a salt lamp. Those things will certainly create the ideal environment, but the most important piece of the puzzle is you.

You must take the time to relax and unwind. Sleeping alone sometimes isn’t enough.

For centuries people have turned to meditation as a means of becoming more aware of themselves and tapping into an energy greater than their own. Mindful meditation can help you find what you’re looking for. Another popular method is mindful yoga. Whatever method you choose, be sure to add it to your routine and practice it in your mindfully focused environment. Combining personal actions within the right environment will accelerate progress and help you discover what you’re looking for.