In my work with clients, awareness is an ever-present companion in the process of exploration and healing. I am constantly amazed at how the simple presence of awareness can become a catalyst for unexpected and positive change, or it can become a source of compassion and empathy, or it can open up a discovery of possibilities that had, moments before, been hidden.

The gift of awareness is that, in itself, it doesn’t carry an agenda. It’s simply there, part of our present-day, benevolent observer/witness, noticing what’s happening in and around us. When we engage awareness with curiosity rather than a preconceived need for things to be a certain way, we open ourselves to something new, even when we have absolutely no idea what that new thing may be. The very presence of awareness, of a part of our consciousness being there noticing, creates something new, something different from how it was a moment ago. And, with the introduction of that something new, we don’t know what will emerge next. Things may stay the same, they may shift in one direction or another, or we may shift our relationship to a particular situation outside us or shift the response we carry inside ourselves.

It’s a mysterious and powerful paradox: The power of being present and noticing is, in and of itself, an enormous resource for change, even as it is free of the demand that anything happen. An important source of support along the way is curiosity, as I’ve said so many times before, because it is inherently open and willing to discover whatever may emerge in our experience without pushing away awareness.

And so, for this week’s experiment, I invite you to explore how bringing awareness to your experience offers you something that wasn’t there before. For example, if you have physical discomfort, explore what happens when you bring your awareness to the specific sensations of that discomfort and simply be curious about how you experience those sensations as you become more specifically aware of them. Give yourself permission not to have any agenda other than noticing and allowing whatever emerges next in your awareness. If you find you’re emotionally distressed about something, notice what happens when you allow yourself to be aware and curious about the experience of your feelings, without demanding any change. Simply be there, noticing what arises and moves through. If you have a thought that bothers you, notice what it’s like to bring awareness to that thought, an awareness that allows you to become more conscious of how thoughts move through you.

An interesting question you might bring to this kind of awareness is “who is it who is aware of experiencing this sensation, feeling, or thought?” This question invites some curiosity as to which aspect of your being is the part that’s aware, and what it’s like to notice that there’s a part of you that can experience awareness without being immersed in the actual sensations, feelings, or thoughts themselves.

As with all the experiments, allow yourself to explore awareness and curiosity without judgment, without shoulds. There are no “right” answers, no place you’re supposed to land. All the experiments are opportunities to explore and discover what it’s like to be more consciously present to your experience.