The Difference Between Mindfulness and Concentration

Mindfulness is the way of living and being in the world — paying attention in the present moment.

When you concentrate, your attention focuses on a particular thing.

This is why mindfulness and concentration go hand-in-hand.

Mindfulness meditation is a form of meditation practice that helps to develop more mindfulness in your day-to-day life by becoming aware of the habitual patterns in your mind, and what’s causing you to react in certain ways to thoughts, sensations or feelings.

Think about concentration like a zoom lens, focusing on a single point, whereas mindfulness is like a wide angle lens, allowing and observing all that is occurring — a state of open awareness.

Concentration is an important factor in mindful meditation practice.

You may have noticed your mind being very jumpy at the start of the meditation practice.

Meditators refer to it as “monkey mind”. It races from thought… to itch… to “Oh, I remember, I was supposed to do that”… to planning… to replaying arguments, conflicts, and things that have happened in the past.

So the mind is racing and concentration helps you to be aware of what’s happening.