In my last Tune-up Series, I spoke about self-coaching yourself. In this series, I will give you some hacks to stay in the moment regardless of how you are feeling. Let’s begin!

Staying in the moment and being present is a tough skill to master. The good news is that you can attain this skill by just being aware of your surroundings and feelings. Similar to the self-coaching technique, you will understand how you are feeling by staying in the moment. After you have felt and understood the moment, then you can decide if you want to keep that feeling or get rid of it. I believe it is perfectly fine to feel sadness or happiness when you see fit. Not all times will be good, and bad times don’t stay forever. In life, we must appreciate the bitter moments because they make the good moments so much sweeter.

Be sure to feel the rough patches in life too because it gives contrast. Those bad times are an important measure of your happiness. If you had all good times and then another good thing happens, it would be hard to gauge how much happier you are. From being sad, angry, or upset, we can immediately feel a change in our mood if we insert some fun and happiness. The bad times matter just as much as the good times. All of this leads to staying in the moment with pure focus and being fully aware.

In order to stay in the moment, we must have full control of our thoughts, actions, and feelings. If someone has done wrong to us, we might be upset and want to cause that person harm or give them payback for “making us feel some type of way.” Well, as you know, you are in charge of your thoughts, feelings, and actions. How can someone make you feel any type of way if they are not in charge of how you feel? Their actions can surely make it difficult for us to remain in control, but it is possible. That possibility is the start of the process of staying in the moment with pure focus.

Steps 1-4 to Staying in the moment:

1. Understanding of how you feel: Whether by using the self-coaching technique, meditation, or keeping a journal of how you feel, this step is crucial because it shows how we feel currently. It is important to be true and honest with yourself, even if you are not open with others. Understanding your feelings is the first step to being fully aware.

2. Let go of any negative feelings: Often negative emotions can transport us someplace else like yesterday, tomorrow, or the moment we think things will be right. Instead of placing ourselves in another time, we must learn to embrace all the times whether good or bad. They help give contrast to life.

3. Feel your body: (by using your senses) You do not have to engage all of them at once, but the more you do then the stronger you will feel at the moment. Engaging multiple senses at once forces the brain to be present in that moment. Practicing mindful use of your senses will help you to stay in the moment more frequently, and help you get there more easily if you ever become unaware of the present moment. Engaging all your senses will keep you 100% aware of the moment and no exterior stimulus can have an effect on you.

Senses:

• Sight, 

• touch, 

• hearing, 

• taste, 

• Smell

  4. Feel time: When you focus on the present moment, it seems like time slows down. You will be able to operate at a higher efficiency than if you were worried about another thought or outcome besides the action or feeling you are experiencing. This power can only come from the pure focus of being present in the moment, allowing time to be your servant rather than the other way around. (Think of the last five minutes of class or work— it can feel painfully long or pass in a flash.) The ability to stay fully aware and in the moment empowers you to perform better and more effectively, free from distractions or external pressures.

In closing, the power you gain from being fully aware and living in the moment is the key to unlocking your fullest potential. If you release your fullest potential each day at a constant flow, you can accomplish anything. You can attain whatever you put your mind to. The mind must be free of worry, revenge, hate, cockiness, and all the other feelings that don’t serve you at the moment. You will have in your life what you focus on, so be sure to focus on the “now” and remain in the moment. Through pure focus, you can achieve the clarity and strength needed to stay on track and manifest your desires.

Until then,

Michael Rearden

Founder of Reven Concepts