Research shows the human mind wanders approximately 50% of the time, and when the mind is wandering (focused on future worry or past regret) people experience more negative emotions compared to when the mind is present in the moment, even if engaged in an unpleasant task.

Present-moment awareness increases productivity because focused attention naturally produces better performance on tasks compared to distracted or wandering attention.

Research studies using the 'attentional blink task' (presenting images in rapid sequence where people normally perceive only every fourth image due to inattentional blindness) show that people who complete meditation retreats show reduced or eliminated attentional blink, meaning meditation improves the ability to process visual information under rapid presentation.