Mindfulness―Recommendations for “Kissa Kippan” Life

"Kissa Kippan (喫茶喫飯; drink tea and eat a meal) is a Zen term that means to concentrate only on the tea when you drink tea and only on eating when you eat a meal, without thinking about anything else."

At job interviews…
“What are your strengths?”
“Oh yes, I’m a multi-tasker. I can perform a variety of tasks simultaneously.”
I never doubted that this answer was always correct and was an appealing way to show I could be an effective employee.

However, when I discovered the term Kissa Kippan, I began to wonder if this lifestyle might be a better fit for me. As a result, I've been experimenting with the Kissa Kippan way of life.

When I eat, work, or cook, I concentrate on the task at hand—not doing two things or more simultaneously. Always finish one job before moving on to the next. For example, I don't read a book while listening to music or do the ironing while watching TV. I simply concentrate on the task.

After a month of this lifestyle, I’ve made some discoveries.

1. I can get a deeper understanding of the information
Because I’m concentrating, I can grasp information more deeply and quickly. As a result, I‘ve become curious and more interested in it. This applies the same to people; I listen more attentively to what they are saying, which increases my interest in them and helps me develop deeper relationships.

2. The quality of what I focus on is higher
In my duties, I focus attentively on each step of the process, and as a result, the overall quality of my work improves.
This attention to detail is evident in cooking. When I concentrate on cooking, even when using the same recipe, the taste of the dish turns out better.
When there are some issues at work, I can handle them calmly and carefully because I take the time to focus on one matter, and as a result, the problem can always be resolved faster than I expected.

3. Less sighs
When I’m focused on what I’m doing right now, my negative feelings from the past are never dragged up. As a result, I sigh less. That being said, of course, there are times when I sigh. But even when that happens, I can look at myself objectively and say, "Oh, I was thinking about something else for a moment, let's focus on what I’m doing now.”

In a nutshell, I have found that Kissa Kippan life is more comfortable for me. I get emotionally disturbed and tired if I’m a multi-tasker.
Why didn't I notice these things before?
Being a single-tasker seems to be more efficient in my everyday life. I feel this is the way of saving my energy and being efficient.

My thanks to Manki Kim for the photo on Unsplash and Tony and Sharon for help with the editing