You are correct, what I am calling "mindful thinking" is not really meditation in the form you are describing, hence why I said in my grandparent post that I don't really meditate. To explain more thoroughly there are two different techniques I make use of:
The first is an outward facing approach, where I try to clear my mind of all inner thoughts and focus completely on the external sensations I am experiencing right now. So for example when entering this mode of thought I focus on putting all thoughts and concerns out of my mind and instead focus solely on the sensation of wind blowing on my skin as I'm walking along, or the sound of birds, or the colors of objects around me. It is hard to explain but by focusing in this state it is as if the colors are brighter, the sounds more vivid, basically all sensations enhanced as I am paying attention more closely with full focus. It is as if the world was a YouTube video playing at 240p and suddenly it switched to an HD stream. The result is an intense feeling of satisfaction in my existence and place in reality.
The other technique I use is to focus entirely inward on identifying what I am feeling or thinking right now. In this state of self awareness I focus on acknowledging and identifying my inner feelings objectively and thinking deeply about where they are coming from, whether they are coming from opinions unsubstantiated by fact, or whether they are rational, etc. I find it helpful to imagine my inner emotions as if they were someone else's so that I can properly see them in the right scope. This is especially useful for dealing with feelings of anger, frustration, or stress. This technique is the exact opposite of the first in that I could walk a couple miles and not really notice anything around me because of the internal focus I had.
Both techniques are similar in that they put away all non essential distractions, and non productive thought in favor of enhanced focus on the here and now and my own existence and place in reality. However, the first is focused on where I am externally, while the second is focused on what I am internally.
At any rate, I find that both techniques are useful to avoid getting wrapped up in a distracted state of non-awareness of self and the real world. I feel that especially working in tech it is easy to become so focused on computer code, and/or distracted by the dopamine triggers from Instagram, Reddit, Netflix, video games, and other distractions that you never stop to think through your own internal thoughts, or fully experience the reality around you.
But by spending time each day to focus on regrounding myself in both my true external reality, and my true internal state it helps me to keep these outside distractions from taking over my life completely and causing me to waste my life on nonessential things that in my opinion don't bring true happiness, just distraction from unhappiness.