Live in the Moment

Where does the majority of your thinking reside: In the here and now, tomorrow or yesterday?

For many people the present moment gets very little attention. They are either worrying about what may happen in the future or they may be trying to resolve things from the past.

Unfortunately, more often than not the things you focus on are the fear-based desires: the attachments you have to outcomes yet to be achieved or outcomes that were not as desirable as you would have had them.

Does dwelling (or worrying) about the past and the future really make anything better? Most people simply end up with a bunch of negative feelings. Even dwelling in the past about how great things used to be, or how much you have improved, does you no good either.

Generally we glorify the past, compare to the present and decide the present isn't good enough or we become complacent with our journey to date and stop growing.

Be very clear, it is this moment that you need to deal with. Your past performances (good or bad) can be quite irrelevant to how you deal with today's issues. It is how you respond right now that is critical.

The Present is Perfect

You may well have heard the saying: The past is history, the future is mystery, the present is a gift, which is why it is called "The Present". Certainly you can and should build on past experiences to handle your present differently. But it is what you do and say now, in this very moment that unlocks you from the control of the past.

Nor is this advisement for ignoring your future, but appreciate that the future will take care of itself, if you are very mindful of your performance right here, right now.

How you handle yourself today is what gives you leverage for your future.

It is true that at times the present may certainly not feel fair, just or optimal and we may not always understand why events happen the way they do.

Yet, it is in the tough moments that you find that you call upon a new set of skills or internal fortitude. The Universe sends you experiences for a reason - it is up to you to fathom the reason then deal with it in the most appropriate way for your own personal growth. It may well be a lesson that your soul yearns to learn and integrate in to its continuing evolution.

It may well be that even though the present may feel unfair or unjust that you are learning to:

• Not live in judgment of others,
• Forgive,
• Love (no matter what),
• Have compassion,
• Be assertive,
• Be joyful,
• Be more precise,
• Be cautious,
• Develop your internal strength,
• Discover the resources and talents that lay untapped within you.

If you don't learn from your experiences you are destined to repeat, over and over, the same mistakes and create the same difficulties in your lifes, until you are finally pushed hard enough to 'get' the lesson you are here to learn.

When you find yourself in one of life's unpleasant situations, take four very deep and slow breaths and then spend a few moments asking yourself

• "What is perfect about this moment, or what could be perfect about this moment if I choose to look for it?"
• "What character trait do I have the opportunity to grow and develop in this moment?"
• "How can I make the most of this situation so I create an even better life for myself?" "
• How am I going to become even stronger and wiser from this experience?"

It may be that the only thing perfect in this moment is that you are alive and breathing. If that is all that you have then you can still be very grateful for it.

Of course, your other option is to immerse yourself in the pain, the fear and the grief and choose to play Victim and rail against the world. However, the length of time you immerse yourself in Victim will dictate the type of life that you live.

Viktor Frankl, a survivor from the concentration camps of World War II, in his book "Man's Search for Meaning" tells us that no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in we can always choose the person we will be. That it is the strength of our inner self that will dictate how we respond to our life challenges.

Remember all things pass; it is in how you respond to the experience that your future is dictated. It is the things that you feel, say and do right now that impact your future. Are you taking self-responsibility for your success and your growth?

You see, until you take your next breath this is the only moment you have. Take each moment (the tough and the great) and live it in the very best way you can, experience it and feel it, be truly alive and grateful in this moment, for in every moment there is a breath of perfection.

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