Healthy Habits and Fulfillment - Part 6 of 9 - Staying Present
It might be fitting that I missed a week last week! I was either too present in what I was doing or not present enough, and it led me to forget. We’re at week 6 of this 9-week series on Healthy Habits and Fulfillment from my conversation with Mandy Balak at The Ace Class. Let’s jump into today’s question:
You say that staying present is a key part of the plan in bringing your dreams to life. Do you have any tips on how to stay present in the process and not always looking ahead?
Staying present is something that is difficult for most of us. And in today’s world of social media, smart photos, TV on demand it’s so easy to find ourselves melting into distraction. Even though I try to stay present I find myself distracted by my phone, what’s on Netflix (Love is Blind, damn you!). We also avoid being present by spending too much time in the past thinking about our mistakes, idealizing the good old days, and/or doubting our skills and experience. It’s ok to reflect on the past but only to use as guidance and fuel for the present. This is for sure easier said than done and something worthy of a future post. But today we’re talking about staying present in the process and not getting caught up looking ahead.
First of all, it’s ok to look ahead. Looking ahead and dreaming is fun. It’s an important part of the manifestation process. The universe can’t bring you what you want if you don’t know what you want. While it’s important to have a vision for the future we can’t let that vision become too rigid … for example I’ve heard people give a very clear idea of what that want their future husband or wife to look like “He or she must have brown hair; I don’t date blondes; I’m not attracted to X”. If we spend too much time focusing on the superficial details Mr. or Mrs. Right might be standing right in front of us and we would miss it.
We can spend too much analyzing the future and comparing it to where we are today. It sounds cliché but the path to getting what we want in life requires us to enjoy the journey involved with getting us there. Being present is about finding fulfillment in where you are today. As long as you’re chipping away at your goals each and every day and moving forward then the choice is yours to be content in the journey.
Finally, it’s valuable to acknowledge the things that take you away from being present - social media, anxiety, food. And give yourself permission to indulge in a heathy way. For example if you’re craving a cookie and you can’t get it out of your head then eat a damn cookie, but make sure you enjoy the cookie, be present with it and savour each bite, don’t devour a box of Oreos while you’re watching the Bachelor. Or think of your TV show at the end of a day as a reward for accomplishing everything your set out to do that day.
Thank you for reading today! If you’re in place in your life where you’re ready for a change and interested in finding out more about coaching, I’d love to connect! The first 30 minutes is always free.
Join me for next week’s question:
Wanting to change your habits is one thing. But, actually taking action on those changes is another. How do we overcome the fear in making the shift we want to see in our businesses, lives or careers? Where do we start? And, what would you say is key in staying on track with following through on these new habits?