  Mindfulness, a practice of bringing attention to the present
non-judgmentally, has many mental and physical well-being benefits, especially
when practiced consistently. Many technologies have been invented to support
solo or group mindfulness practice such as mobile apps, live streams, virtual
reality environments, and wearables. In this paper, we present findings from an
interview study with 20 experienced mindfulness practitioners about their
everyday mindfulness practices and technology use. Participants identify the
benefits and challenges of developing long-term commitment to mindfulness
practice. They employ various strategies, such as brief mindfulness exercises,
social accountability, and guidance from teachers, to sustain their practice.
While conflicted about technology, they adopt and appropriate a range of
technologies in their practice for reminders, emotion tracking, connecting with
others, and attending online sessions. They also carefully consider when to use
technology, when and how to limit its use, and ways to incorporate technology
as an object for mindfulness. Based on our findings, we discuss expanding the
definition of mindfulness and the tension between supporting short- and
long-term mindfulness practice. We also propose a set of design recommendations
to support everyday mindfulness including such as through the lens of metaphor,
reappropriating non-mindfulness technology, and bringing community support into
personal practice.
