From The Mindful Way through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness written by Mark Williams, et al.,

The intention in mindfulness practice is not to forcibly control the mind but to perceive clearly its healthy and harmful patterns. It is to approach our minds and bodies with a sense of curiosity, openness, and acceptance so that we may see what is here to be discovered, and be with it without so much struggling. In this way, little by little, we begin to release ourselves from the grip of our old habits of mind. We begin to know directly what we are doing as we are doing it. We are beginning a graceful transition from unawareness to awareness.