Staying present or “awake” in this world is not easy! Often our days are filled with routine and habitual actions (or news), that makes it a challenge to be inspired, stay awake and focus on making the next “right” choice.
How do we stay in the present moment? First, we need to catch ourselves checking out. What does this look like? There are many ways that we can go to sleep at the wheel. Do any of the following habits sound familiar? For many of us, some of these will ring true. No need to feel overwhelmed, just pick one to work with and observe your habits.
- Habitually eating, not truly tasting our food or eating more than we need
- Not listening to someone when they are speaking to us, especially our children
- Arriving somewhere and not remembering how we got there
- Going into a room and forgetting why we went there in the first place
- Buying things you don’t need or really want
- Moving so quickly we are unaware of how our actions might affect others or the environment
Now what? The solution lies in observation and noticing. Begin by observing how the particular habit of checking out is surfacing in your life. Hold a compassionate magnifying glass to all the creative ways this pattern surfaces. We are changing nothing at this point, just observing. After being a keen observer, we can begin to make conscious choices to engage in life, for example: eating just enough; listen to who is talking to us; give our full attention to one thing at a time (this is the opposite of multitasking); use our purchasing power to create good, and the list goes on.
The good news is if we are observing and noticing- we are staying awake (being present) and life becomes more interesting, inspired, and authentic! This is mindful living! It can be a challenging path, but one worth taking.
