You hear this all the time, “be more present”, easier said than done. But why is it important? Because if you are present, you become more mindful of what is around you and you will grow in self-awareness. Plus, it is the only space in time that you control. You cannot change the past and you cannot predict the future, so how about controlling what you can control.
During 2020 and those dark days of isolation, I did a daily video of focusing on the things we can control, since everything else was outside of our control. Those tips are still useful today, but now that the world is a buzz, we may have forgotten that we still need to focus on the things we can control.
Over the next several weeks, I am going to help you navigate a path to improving your Self-Awareness. This blog will focus on Being Present, then we will discuss Mindfulness, then tools for Self-Awareness.
Step 1: Being Present
Mediation is a great way to help train yourself to being present and I will discuss in more detail under the Mindfulness blog, but that may not be the easiest place to start for everyone. Remember this is a practice which involves training and time.
Start by noticing what you are doing in that moment:
- If you like to do Olympic lifting how about what it takes to get the barbell off the floor to above your knee as you are doing it vs thinking about how you will need to pull yourself under the bar fast, that is in the future, the now is getting the bar off the floor.
- Having a one-on-one conversation, focusing on what the person is saying and looking at them vs hearing your phone ping and looking at what just came in.
A real cool and I think fun way to help be present is to practice the “Awe” in everyday life. Listen to this episode of NPR The Pulse – The Transformative Power of Awe. The interview is with Dacher Keltner on his book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life. He states Awe can be found in 8 places: Moral Beauty, Nature, Collection of Patterns, like watching sports, Music, Visual, Spiritual/Meditation, Big Ideas and Life/Death occurrences.
Find what gives you Awe and practice it daily. Go for a walk and really look at what is around you, you may be surprised by what you have been missing. Stop and wonder a bit more each day. I find being in Nature brings me Awe, the photo in this blog was taken on a hike in Glacier NP. I just happened to turn around on the trail and caught the clouds coming over the ridge in the most amazing colors. The more Awe’s in our day will lead to less stress and help us be more open to others and their ideas.
Daily fitness helps to open your mind and reduce stress/anxiety, which helps you to be more present. Let PUSH511 help you with your fitness through CrossFit Group Classes and Personal Training.
Sources:
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/381443461/the-pulse
https://www.dacherkeltner.com/books
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