Returning to clear seeing and skillful action
in the midst of life's complexitiesWhat if we could break free from our default habits and access our fullest potential, creating ripples of positive change in our interconnected world?
I'm Dr. Shalini Bahl, and I am thrilled that you are here!
My understanding of mindfulness has been shaped not just by years of research and practice, but also by my experience as a Town Councilor in Amherst, Massachusetts. Working in local government showed me firsthand the challenges of maintaining mindfulness amid complex decisions, conflicting viewpoints, and high-stakes situations.
This experience, combined with my research, mindfulness practice, and work with clients, led me to a fascinating discovery: real-world mindfulness isn't about perfect meditation—it's about learning to return to clarity and our deepest intentions when life gets messy. It's about awakening both our capacity to see clearly and our innate potential for imagination, creativity, and purposeful action. This is where Sama Life comes in.
"Sama" in Sanskrit and Pali (ancient Indian languages) means balanced and skillful—qualities that are essential for modern leadership, whether in your family, community, or organization. In our fast-paced world, we often operate on autopilot, letting default habits drive our decisions during crucial moments: strategic planning, difficult conversations, team conflicts, or complex negotiations. While these automatic responses make us efficient, research shows they can limit our effectiveness and cloud our judgment when stakes are highest.
Beyond that, our habits of rushing and reacting are diminishing our ability to be present, connect, imagine, and create—to show up in this wild and beautiful life in ways that are fulfilling to us and beneficial for the world.
Mindfulness Beyond Non-Judging Awareness: 8 Essential Skills
Here's what I've learned: mindfulness isn't just about meditation or maintaining non-judgmental awareness. In our complex world, that kind of awareness can be elusive, and those few minutes of morning meditation often lose their impact by the time we need them most.
Instead, I focus on specific qualities that help us align with our intentions and free us from conditioning—whether shaped by evolution or our social and personal experiences—that limit our ability to see clearly, connect with our intentions, and act with both wisdom and creative potential. While these qualities are emphasized in ancient mindfulness traditions, they often get overlooked in secular mindfulness discussions.
The good news? We already possess these skills—we just need to practice and play to nurture them. I've identified eight essential mindfulness skills that help us disrupt default habits and return to our natural ability to see clearly, listen deeply, and act skillfully. Sama Life represents a way of living where we approach life with a mind that is open to seeing clearly what is present, important, and possible. Through this substack, we'll explore practical ways to cultivate this clarity and intention in how we live, learn, love, and lead.
These eight mindfulness skills, which I explore in depth in my book "Return to Mindfulness," systematically transform our default habits:
Awareness disrupts autopilot by helping us observe our patterns with clarity
Compassion transforms harsh judgment into understanding and kindness
Curiosity breaks through confirmation bias to explore new possibilities
Energy overcomes status quo bias to align with deeper intentions
Appreciative joy counters negativity bias by recognizing what's working
Inner calm releases attachments to fixed beliefs and expectations
Focus cuts through distractions to prioritize what truly matters
Equanimity brings discernment and balance to competing viewpoints
What You Can Expect from Sama Life
In this space, I share:
Practical ways to return to clarity in challenging moments
Stories of real people navigating complex situations with mindfulness
Scientific insights translated into lived wisdom
Poetry, art, music, and micro-practices for waking up in daily life
Evidence-based explorations of mindful living
This journey can be messy—and that's okay. We won't always have immediate answers. Sometimes, especially when we most want to be mindful, we might struggle to return to that inner space of non-judging awareness. This is precisely why we need to foster these eight mindfulness skills: they help us recognize and transform our default habits, guiding us back to a place of inner harmony and balance.
Why Community Matters
The dominant culture constantly pulls us back into default ways of being that neither fulfill us individually nor sustain our world. Together, we can support each other in breaking free from these patterns and creating positive change. Join our growing community of practitioners, artists, leaders, and changemakers. You'll receive practical insights, inspiration, and gentle reminders that help you access clarity when you need it most.
Ready to begin? Take our free mindfulness assessment to discover your strengths and opportunities in these eight mindfulness skills.
Welcome to Sama Life, a more skillful way of living.
—Shalini
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