How to Live in the
Now
Today is now and tomorrow is another day, and that to live
well you must live in the now.
Living in the now is easier said than done because the human mind has a tendency to focus on the past or to project itself into the future, but seldom stays in the present.
Our actions or inactions are derived and driven by our
thoughts and memories of our past experiences. If those experiences were
negative, our conscious and subconscious mind will tell us to avoid them in the
future; on the other hand, if they are positive, they tend to instruct us to
repeat them in the future. Accordingly, the human mind will constantly shuffle
between the past and the future. As a result, it seldom stays in the present
moment. To illustrate, while talking on the cell phone, how often do we talk
about what happened or what we are going to do next? If we think more deeply,
the subject of our conversation mostly involves mostly the past or the future.
In a worse scenario, if you are talking or texting while driving, your mental
focus is certainly not on the now—which is driving your car.
The first step to train your mind to focus more on the
present is to concentrate on your breathing. Most of us are totally unaware of
our breaths, unless we are short of breath after running or climbing stairs, or
due to some medical conditions that may cause difficulties in breathing.
Concentration on how you breathe in and breathe out, as well as your body’s
sensations during the inhalation and exhalation trains you to develop
mindfulness. Understand that your body is yours only, and it is
always with you. Finding the moment-by-moment relationship with your
body through your breathing is your pathway to wellness of the body, the mind,
and the soul.
Mindfulness is your purposeful attention to the present
moment. This purposeful attention enables you to recognize your thoughts as
they occur, but without paying judgmental attention to them; in other words,
they neither distract nor disturb you, and you just observe them
objectively, like watching a movie about yourself unfolding before your very
eyes.
Learn mindfulness from
an expert who provides a useful guide to harness the power of your mind
with mental training tools and techniques to perfect the art of mental
transformation. Are you living your life, or your life living you?
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
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