Living in the PRESENT

"What lies ahead of you and what lies behind you is nothing compared to what lies within you" Mohandas K. Gandhi

"Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That's why we call it 'The Present'." Eleanor Roosevelt

These are two of our favorite quotes. They really speak to the importance of living in the present. It may sound simple, but too many people live their lives in the past or in the future, and they never really get around to living in the present.

Here’s how we like to look at it….

The Past – We ALL have a past. And, we have all done or said things that we wish we could take back or change. However, last we checked that, was not even remotely possible. Yet, we have a tendency to re-play these events over and over in our heads. The ironic thing is, most of the events or situations that took place in our past, happened just once. But by replaying them over and over again, we keep them alive and thriving in our present! Remember the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray and Andie McDowell? Bill Murray keeps reliving the same day (Groundhog Day - February 2nd) over and over again until he finally reexamines his life and his priorities, and only then is he able to break free of the past. So, take a look at your life. Are there any Groundhog days in your past that you need to break free of?

The Future – No one can predict the future. We can speculate on what we think may happen, but normally when we do, we tend to forecast the doom and gloom report. The only thing we can control about the future is our attitude. So, if we have a choice to think either positively or negatively about the future (knowing that we really don’t know the outcome), we would encourage you to think positively!

Many times people choose to think negatively because that is a protective defense mechanism and many think it will safely prepare them should the worst happen. For example, we have a friend who is looking for a job. After each interview she goes on, we ask her how she thinks it went. Her response is ALWAYS something to the effect of: ‘Oh, I am sure I won’t get the job. I can just tell that they didn’t like me (or think I was qualified, or WHATEVER excuse you want to insert). This is her way of mentally preparing herself should she not get the job. But, it actually is counter-productive! Not only is she sending out negative vibes to the universe, she is also now depressed over an imagined outcome that she has created for herself. It’s like trying to predict the end of a movie after the introductory credits have played. It is going to affect how you feel for the next 2 hours of your life, and not in a positive way!

The Present – This is really all we have. The here and now! Instead of spending that precious time analyzing and trying to rewrite the past or predicting and fretting about the future, we challenge you to just live in the present. You might be surprised to see how much fun you can have. After all, it is called the Present, so remember that it is a gift and enjoy it!