What happened to the time? When we are busy in our day-to-day lives, it sometimes seems that whole seasons pass in a blink. And the goals we have… well, they can easily slip by in that blur too. You want to wake up: to get control of your time and meet your goals. But how?
In coaching, we sometimes talk about our lives being in process. That is, our lives are constantly flowing forward, over and around the highs and lows of our everyday experience, like a river. As humans, we often try to minimise those ups and downs: we plan for the future, we dwell on the past, and thus avoid experiencing the emotion at this present moment. As a result, we dampen our aliveness and sort of zone out. No wonder we suddenly “wake up” to realise minutes, even days or weeks, have passed us by!
Have you ever had the experience of driving a car only to find yourself suddenly at your destination? Where have you been? Not present, that is for sure! But really, what does it mean to be present in your day-to-day life?
It is quite challenging to focus all your attention on this moment. Try it: as you are reading these words, slow down. Experience the action of reading one word at a time. What sounds do you hear in the room around you? How comfortable are you? How are you breathing? Recognise that you are alive, right now, in this moment. What was that like for you?
Here is another experiment. Go ahead and laugh, but try this anyway. It may give you a whole new way to be in the moment. As you go through your day, ask yourself: Where is my butt? On a chair? Against a wall? Walking past the Sephora in the mall? Crazy as it sounds, it is very difficult not to be present when you are trying to figure out where your rump is!
Okay! You have tried rump-awareness, and have probably heard all kinds of other advice for becoming present in the moment – breathing, mindfulness, meditation, and so forth. Now, broaden the concept: how can you stay present and focused for a project or goal in your life? Select a theme.
Here is how it works: as an example, my theme for my business this year is “new realms, inspired action”. This theme serves a filter. Each month, I review my business goals through the lens of my theme and prioritise those that consist actions in fields I have never dabbled in before, and give me and my clients the most inspiration. Brainstorming projects to undertake, I look for those that best match my theme. My theme gives me a sense of exploration when choosing new opportunities: last week alone, I registered the first course I will be teaching, after my six years of hands-on practice. These are experiences I would not have imagined for myself in the past, but they came my way, fit the criteria and were so exciting and inspiring!
A client of mine has a theme for the month in regard to his job search: Action! Driven by action, he set some aggressive goals for landing job interviews. In every step he takes, he asks himself, “does this forward my action toward my goals?” You should see the guy – he is on fire!
What is your theme? It is time for you to wake up and be on fire too!
Thank you Free-Photos for the background image https://pixabay.com/photos/pedestrians-rush-hour-blurred-1209316/