"The awareness that arises through paying attention on purpose in the present moment and non-judgmentally in the service of self understanding and wisdom"
Mindfulness is an inherent human capability that belongs to anyone irrespective of race, creed, gender, you name it. It is our birthright.
The ability to be on the spot—aware of what’s going on inside, outside, and all around, connecting with others—is part of being human.
Developing mindful awareness of the present moment can connect us to experiences, interactions, emotions and thoughts without the interference of judgment, bias, beliefs or distractions. We can 'Just Be' in the present moment, even if it is too exciting to contain or too painful to tolerate. Accepting the present moment for what it IS can be considered the crown jewel of mindfulness.
Meditative exercises and/or mindfulness meditation can be the first step to learning Mindfulness. When we focus our attention on our breath or curiously explore sense activation like sight, hearing or taste we are developing our brain's ability to attend to the present moment. We do not need to clear our mind of thoughts while we are meditating as it is our ability to frequently come back to our attention or breath and away from distracting thoughts that develops our ability to be mindful.