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If you’ve been listening for a while, you’ll know that I’ve dedicated numerous episodes to debunking myths about mindfulness. If you missed them or would like to hear them again, you’ll find links below. Just when I thought I’d addressed all the myths, another one caught my attention.
Myth-debunking episodes:

* Excuse buster: You’re wrong if you think your busy mind means you can’t meditate
* Excuse buster: Oh yes, you do have time to meditate
* Monkey mind isn’t the problem you think it is
* Misconceptions inspired by meditation photographs
* Enlightenment: There’s nothing mystical about it
* Acceptance is not the same as denial
* Mindful acceptance does not mean giving in
* Introspection: What not to do during meditation
* Are you putting enough effort into your meditation practice?
* Letting go doesn’t mean ignoring your problems

Earlier this summer, a publisher contacted me to gauge my interest in writing a mindfulness book. They already had a title. It was to be called Mindful Willpower: A Guide to Using Mindfulness to Increase Self Control.
Apparently, this publisher collects data on the kinds of information people are searching for online. Then they outline a book to answer the need. They find someone to write the book very quickly and publish it as soon as possible while people are still looking for the relevant information. This way they’re guaranteed sales.
My response to their inquiry was, “Maybe people are looking for this book, but that doesn’t mean anyone should write it.” I don’t know whether they found an author, but I know it won’t be me. Why? Because mindfulness is not a mind control technique.
To be mindful is to be aware of what’s going on without judging it. In mindfulness practice, we aim to be aware of what’s going both externally and internally. We learn to notice it and accept it - which doesn’t mean we like it or agree with it, but that we can allow it to be present without reacting to it.
In contrast, when you’re aiming to exert willpower or to control your mind, you are judging what’s going. Judging is how you decide whether your behaviour or thoughts are good or bad, appropriate or inappropriate, desirable or undesirable. Judging is how you discriminate between what you should do and what you shouldn’t do.
I can, however, understand where this myth comes from. When a person first sits down to meditate, often their first experience is one of discovering just how busy their mind is. It feels out of control. With practice, that person learns to accept the busyness in the mind and, as a result, the mind calms down. But, it calms all on its own, not through willful coercion. It may feel like the calmness that comes with practice is a form of mind control, but it’s just the opposite. It’s a form of acceptance.
Now,