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Fluid Awareness is an intentional practice that builds on basic awareness and mindful observation by revealing that our awareness flows like water, naturally following our neural gravity—paths of least resistance shaped by past experiences, emotions, and thought patterns.

The practice begins with observing not only our thoughts and emotions, but also how our awareness moves—where it gravitates, where it pools, and where it rushes past unnoticed.

By developing an understanding of these patterns, we can gently redirect the flow of our awareness, guiding it toward pathways that align with our values, intentions, and well-being.

Through devotion and consistent practice, we can reshape our state of consciousness and enhance relational harmony, creating a more conscious and intentional experience of life.

How to practice Fluid Awareness

Fluid Awareness is a self-reinforcing feedback loop:

Awareness → Mindful Awareness → Fluid Awareness → Integration → Awareness

This feedback loop continuously refines how we perceive, observe, and direct our awareness.

1. The practice begins with our Awareness, the present-moment recognition of our thoughts, emotions, and sensations as they arise.

2. Through Mindful Awareness, we deepen this recognition by observing without judgment, noticing patterns, and understanding the natural flow of our attention.

3. This leads to Fluid Awareness, where we consciously guide our awareness, redirecting it in alignment with our values and intentions.

4. Integration ensures that the insights we gain through this practice become embodied, transforming our default patterns and reshaping our neural pathways over time.

5. This integrated learning then enhances our baseline Awareness, making future cycles more intuitive, adaptive, and refined.

The practice begins simply and deepens over time. As each cycle builds on the last, Fluid Awareness becomes an effortless, natural way of engaging with life.

Begin at Awareness

Step 1: Recognize

We become aware of what is present in our experience. This could be a thought, a feeling, a physical sensation, or an external event. For example, we may notice that we're feeling a sense of unease.

Step 2: Acknowledge

We put words to what we’re experiencing. This helps to clarify our experience, and it also helps us develop language for communicating about it. "I’m feeling uneasy right now."

Tip: A daily practice of checking in with ourselves can be helpful here. This could be a quiet moment of introspection in the morning, a quick self-check during the day, or a few minutes of reflection in the evening.

Enter Mindful Awareness

Step 3: Observe without Judgment

We pause, step back, and observe our experience without trying to change it or evaluate it as good or bad. We just let it be.

"I notice a sense of unease in my stomach."

Step 4: Accept

We practice accepting what we’re experiencing in this moment without resisting it or wishing it was different.

"This is my experience right now, and that's okay."

Tip: Mindfulness meditation is a powerful practice for cultivating non-judgmental observation and acceptance.

Practice Fluid Awareness

Step 5: Cultivate understanding

We contemplate why our awareness is flowing where it is. Is there a reason we’re feeling this way? Could it be related to a certain event, thought, or belief?

"I realize my unease is related to the upcoming presentation."

Step 6: Choose a new path for awareness

We decide where we want to direct our awareness instead. This should align with our values, goals, and the state of being we want to embody.

"I choose to focus on the excitement of sharing my ideas, rather than the fear of judgment."

Step 7: Redirect awareness

We use our intention and will power to actively redirect our awareness.

This might involve changing our physical state, adjusting our environment, rephrasing our thoughts, or taking an action that supports our chosen focus.

Tip: Cognitive restructuring techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy can be useful for understanding and redirecting our thought patterns. Likewise, practices like yoga or breathwork can help shift our physical and emotional state.

Integrate lessons into our Awareness

Step 8: Reflect and integrate

After redirecting our awareness and engaging with our chosen focus, we take time to reflect on our experience. What did we learn about ourselves? About our patterns of awareness? About our values and intentions? How can we apply this understanding to our future practices of Fluid Awareness and to our life more generally?

"I learned that my fear of judgment can hijack my excitement about sharing my ideas. In the future, I can anticipate this and plan my redirection ahead of time."

Without Integration, we risk repeating the loop without long-term transformation. Instead of truly embodying change, we might find ourselves constantly needing to redirect awareness without fundamentally altering the patterns that reinforce our neural gravity. Integration ensures that each cycle builds on the last, reinforcing lasting cognitive and emotional shifts.

Tip: Journaling can be a very effective tool for this stage. Writing down our thoughts, feelings, and experiences can provide insights that might not be evident in the moment. It also creates a record of our journey that we can look back on to see how far we’ve come.

Why we believe this practice matters

As we practice Fluid Awareness, we naturally refine our Awareness, becoming more attuned to subtle shifts in our mental and emotional landscape. This also enhances Mindful Awareness, allowing us to observe more clearly and with greater depth. And with that increased clarity, Fluid Awareness becomes even more precise and effective in guiding our awareness.

This loop creates a self-reinforcing cycle of increasing clarity, intentionality, and adaptability. Over time, it becomes more natural to notice when awareness is flowing in unhelpful directions and to redirect it with ease—almost like a well-practiced dance between perception, observation, and intentional engagement.