THIS

THIS is the only moment that matters.

Let go of what happened an hour ago with your boss, last month with your family, or 25 years ago when you were a child – or more than 25 years ago for some of us. There is nothing you can do to bring it back. So let it go.

And stop worrying about that big meeting you have coming up, where you’ll be in five years, or whether you’ll have enough money saved to retire.

Let it all go. THIS is the only moment that matters.

Put your total focus on this one moment. Make every breath your deepest, make every word your most impactful, and make every encounter you have with others be the only thing going on in your life, because in moments like these, it is.

The pain and anguish we put ourselves through reliving the past or trying to predict the future only serves to do one thing; hold us back. It zaps our energy, our creativity, and our attention. It serves to hinder our advancement – in our career, with friends, and at home.

When you put your total focus and attention on this moment, wonderful things happen. It allows you to be fully engaged, to utilize all your senses, have all the time you need, and become nonexistent. It frees your mind, awakens your soul, and allows your energy…your true energy…to flow.

Please don’t tell me you can’t do this. You already have. Think about that time when you were fully engaged in a book or watching a big game. Perhaps it was when you were hiking and you stopped, breathed in the fresh mountain air, and smiled. In those moments, the only thing that mattered was that one singular moment. It was freeing and allowed you to, if only for a brief time, become one with the moment.

To make this more of a possibility throughout your day, stop what you’re doing and take just one moment to try this. And after that, try another moment. And then another. Quiet your mind and focus on nothing but being. Just. Be.

But what about at work? There is so much happening, so much to think about, so much to learn, and so much going on that you may be thinking that you can’t keep up with your co-workers, let alone yourself. How does one apply this approach with a demanding work schedule?

It can undoubtedly be a challenge, but the thing to remember…is to remember. By that I mean, reminding yourself even when you have 10 things coming at you…and especially when you have 10 things coming at you…to stop. To breathe. And to not get caught up in everybody else’s emotions. Sure, they may look at you funny at first but when you are able to offer sound and solid solutions to issues that aren’t rooted in the wild emotions of those moments, people will come to understand. And they’ll also begin to look forward to coming to you because you’ve become that effective at offering solutions, while remaining in the moment doing so. Plus, you’re a heck of a nice person to boot.

For myself, when it comes to, for example, being in front of a crowd giving a talk, leading a workshop, or consulting with company leaders, being present in this moment is the only thing that matters. Because not only do they deserve my full, undivided attention, but I want to give it to them. I want them to understand that they’re the only thing that matters to me, that they’re worthy of that level of attentiveness, and what they’re doing or saying is the only thing I want to focus on. I want them to feel that important because to me, they are.

And the bonus of me being in the moment and so focused on them, is that they’ve now become so immersed in what I have to say, and are equally present in the moment.

And please don’t tell me you can’t do this. You already have.

Think about the time you were so focused on meeting a deadline that it seemed like in an instant, it went from 9:00am to 1:00pm in about “20 minutes”. Or the time when a co-worker came to you with a personal problem because they needed your help? Or what about that heart-to-heart you felt you needed to have with your boss?

Time became irrelevant in those moments, it’s as if it ceases to exist – which is a topic for another day. You were so focused on the moment that before you knew it, it became minutes; and then became hours.

A question that gets asked though is, “How do I maintain staying in THIS moment?”

What has helped me make huge strides in becoming more mindful is meditation. While there are different forms of meditation, in what I feel is its purest form – that of quieting your mind – helps you to let go. To let go of your thoughts. To let go of any anxiety. To let go of any stress you may be feeling. It’s pure bliss and really an intoxicating feeling, which may seem foreign to you…for now. 

Again, please don’t tell me you can’t do this. You already have. 

Have you ever been snapped back into reality after having seemingly gone to another place? Think about a long drive you may have made, when all of a sudden, you realize you’ve gone 20 miles in what seems like a moment. You felt aware the whole time, but really your mind went to a quiet spot where time ceased to exist. Meditation is similar in that you are quiet, yet aware of the moment. 

My wife is a meditator, but not in the sense you may think. She loves getting on our riding mower and cutting the grass. Side note:  I’m a lucky man. For her, the noise of the mower allows her to stay quiet and as in a more traditional type of meditation, with her thoughts being only on the now. This is said to be true for a lot of runners as well, in that they’re focused, in their case, on this stride; in the shower is also a place where people feel they’re able to get “quiet” as well.

The point being that when you allow yourself to focus on this moment, regardless of how you accomplish it, you get yourself to a place of peace, of quiet, and of mindfulness.

THIS, indeed, is the only moment that matters.