Hygge isn’t mindfulness. I don’t think I need to point that out half as much as I used to, when hygge was a new concept and it was very easy to think of it in terms of sipping tea and resting in the moment alone.  Or, if hygge is to do with mindfulness, it’s a sociable mindfulness that works best in small groups when you all feel present and grounded and happy. Hygge isn’t clinical or analytical or clean. Hygge just is.

And having said that, hygge works very well with a mindful life. If mindfulness is about stepping aside from life for a moment and looking at oneself and one’s life and appreciating this pure, clear moment of emotion…. then hygge and mindfulness go well together. I enjoy the rare moments of solitude in my life much more if I slow down and appreciate them. If I consciously say to myself “This moment is mine to enjoy: this small interval in my life is mine to appreciate fully” then I am grounded and free to be fully in the moment.

This March I am in search of a more mindful life, one where I look at life closer, and appreciate the great gifts around me more. March is a good month for mindfulness, partly because it starts with the same letter and alliteration is always a great technique in self-help books, but also because it’s Spring, and the World itself becomes a source of so many moments of joy or inspiration or wonder that consciously slowing down at a time when even the buds are racing to burst into being and the birds rush to build nests puts us in a Matrix moment when we can see with greater precision and clarity without rushing ourselves on to the next Big Activity. It’s an ideal month for being, not doing.

So I have set out my plans for March. A few practices to encourage me to be. Just a few simple ideas to help me pause, or to look or to enjoy. This month I am actually concentrating on finding time to be alone and hygge, rather than the family and friends hygge I usually get to enjoy. I’m going to wake slightly earlier, or take that lunchtime stroll alone. I might aim to have a coffee once a week alone or to slide away when the TV is on and sit quietly. I wrote my list in my bullet journal…. surely the most hyggely planning system ever!…. and here it is.

I’m not aiming to do all these every day… that would be stupid, since it would become a burden and not the pause in daily life I need it to be. Some of them (like the Rituals to soothe) will probably happen almost every day, while others like a creative excursion will be once-in-the-month things. And there are other mindfully hygge things I do, like the magazines I love or the walks in the woods. They’ll still be part of my life as well.

I’ll be posting about my month on the blog, occasionally, but more often on Instagram or Facebook using #mindfulmarch and #marchhygge as my hashtags. At the very least, I aim to get the photo a day done and up. What about you? Do you find mindfulness and hygge compatible? Or do you struggle to fit one or the other into your life? What could you do to make your March into a #mindfulmarch?

My past blogposts that deal with the hygge/mindfulness issue:

Is Hygge Just Mindfulness in a New, Fancy Danish Wrapper?

Hygge is Felt In the Heart, Not Understood In The Brain

So, What Is Hygge?

****How to Hygge the British Way Blog isn’t monetised. I have taken the decision that I want to remain neutral and not to promote things just because. I will only ever review items that I have bought myself, or that I think will help to promote hygge in a busy life. To do this, I need support. Even just the price of a coffee adds up to a book over time, and it means I can stay independent. Would you help? Please consider clicking through to paypal.me/HyggeJem and leaving even a small amount. I’d be very grateful. Thank you.***

You can also support me by buying my books. My book on hygge through the summer,   How to Hygge Your Summer, is available in Paperback and Kindle form, from Amazon. Although it’s often seen as all throws and cosy coffee by the fire, hygge isn’t that: it’s far more encompassing.

My other books have more ideas that are good for hygge, and are all available from Amazon. 50 Ways to Hygge the British Way  is available in Paperback and Kindle version . Have Yourself a Happy Hygge Christmas was released in September 2017 and is available again in paperback and ebook version.

If you purchase anything through the links on this page, I get a couple of pence extra per copy, and if you’ve already read my books and enjoyed them, please leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads.