Struggling to be present? Always on? Do you find the chitter chatter in your head distracting you? Getting in the way of thinking clearly and being present, in the now? Or perhaps it’s the latest social media or media on one of the many devices demanding your attention and energy.
Does it feel like you are alternating between being fully on and standby, ready at a moments notice to power back on, just like the many devices? Never powering down properly?
We all know being on standby also uses precious energy so when you want to be fully on, you want to make the most of it rather than being distracted. These are times when we want to be present.
Present when at work, for example when delivering a presentation or at a meeting or spending time with colleagues.
Present at home when spending precious time with others catching up or with self spending precious ‘me time’.
There’s a lot going for it. Being present is like a state in NLP or emotional condition. I find an easy way to think about being present is to treat it as a skill to be used or a ‘muscle’ which needs working out to build up.
Please find three tips to be more present below:
Notice where you are, to take back control
The first step is to know where your attention is. You may find your focus drawn to the external such as mobiles, TV, computers and be unaware of this. Or you may be preoccupied on the inside such as with work, tasks or current challenges and equally unaware. To successfully move towards being present is bringing where you are, wherever that is, into your awareness so that you can take back control. Taking back control allows you to make decisions about what is taking your awareness away. For example, turning the mobile or TV or computer off.
Bring your attention to now
Where attention goes, energy flows. You will struggle to be present if your attention is anywhere else. So, start by focusing on what you want (rather than on what you don’t want) and notice your energy flow in a positive direction. Feels good, huh?
Stay in the now
Since you are present in now, you may want to stay and realise the benefits. It can be a great place to be and well worth hanging about for a while. Notice what and who you are being. What are you are experiencing? What does it look, sound and feel like? What are you saying to yourself as you enjoy the positives. Take a mental ‘snapshot’ so that when you return, you and your mind will know exactly where to go.
Work at it!
These tips may take some practice and as stated earlier, if you approach this as a skill or a ‘muscle’ the more you use it the more competent and comfortable it becomes getting you the results you want at work, at home and in life itself.
To understand more about overcoming blocks and barriers in thinking you may want to consider our NLP Training Courses, get in touch for details or a chat.
