There are two paths: one toward mindlessness and the other toward mindfulness.  This is an important divergence to understand.  It involves some non-intuitive reasoning.  The path of mindlessness occurs within the context of a hectic, defined, mutli-tasking, very full existence.  The overabundant noise of this path serves to dull the senses and create a mindless state–a nullification of the critical thinking resources of human cognition.  The path of mindfullness is a reconsideration of what is important to focus on–it involves practice that mitigates the noise of the world and enables the mind to be filled with esoteric considerations.  These are the considerations that can yield true insight.