Have you ever missed it…

Have you ever missed a moment in your life?  Crazy question, right?  Of course you have!  We all have.  For many reasons.  Some good.  And some, well, not so much. And how do you feel after you missed a moment?  Do you feel regret?  Shame?  Like you missed out?

I don’t know about you, but it is a lousy feeling.  Kind of like the look Amy gives me when she is speaking to me and just stops and stares because I am lost in my phone.  I am sure I am the only one that has ever happened to, right?

I think we can all agree…

Being fully present is tough!  Being dialed in for the current moment in the current space is hard!  SO with that said, what do we do about it?  How do we fix it?  How do we show up in the same space, mind and body, so that we can experience the moment?  For us and for those around us.

Here are 3 simple strategies…

1. Put The Phone Down

Before you bite my head off for this one- there has never, to my knowledge, been more of a presence-stealer than our phones.  We can’t be fully present and lost in a video, a scroll, social media, the news, or whatever you look at on your phone.  So what if we put it in our pocket and left it there when we are with others?  My best experiences in life are with friends or family when we are fully present and undistracted.  As my family gets older and it is harder to get us all together, the last thing I want is to ruin it by distraction with screens.  So just put it down.  Even for an hour. The messages and notifications can wait.  The videos and social media can definitely wait.  You brain and your people will thank you!

And ask yourself this easy question- is what I am looking at on my phone more important than those around me right now?  If not, I think you know what to do!

2. Ask Questions

One great way to be present in a room and in a group is to ask great questions and be genuinely interested in what others have to say.  Want to direct the conversation?  Ask a question that you are truly interested in the answer.  We have an epidemic of being unseen and unheard right now in our society.  What if you asked someone else a couple of good questions and let them know their answers are valuable to you?

3. Set A Timer

What if you gave yourself the gift of knowing what you will be doing for the next 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or an hour?  In my opinion, time blocking is critical to our success with our time.  IF we don’t know what we are doing with our time, we easily default to easy things- Netflix, phone, videos, YouTube… all the things.  These are not bad in and of themselves, but if there are no boundaries, they take a LOT of time.  So what if you scheduled your day and silenced your distractions during those times so you could get some work done?  Or just be totally present at dinner, or out for coffee with a friend, or in a meeting?  If it doesn’t get scheduled, it doesn’t happen!  Free-range chickens can be a great idea, but when we have no boundaries on how we use our time and become free-range humans, the results can be less than desirable.

The concept of #WINtheNOW is life-changing but on the surface it can be hard to implement.  What if we tried these simple steps this week and showed up in our life?  Fully present.  Ready to truly experience moments.  Ready for the richness of life.  We could truly discover the life that is worth living!

If you want a little more about the now’s of your life and how to win, check out this older but very relevant blog on winning in your now.