4 simple and fun ways to enjoy more the present moment
Living in the present moment has a lot of benefits. For example it improves our concentration, effectiveness and, in general, our mood. Living and thinking about the past makes us feel guilty or depressed, and thinking about the future makes us anxious. On the contrary, the present moment is the only concrete time we can have. When we live in it we aren’t anxious or depressed, we just enjoy what we have.
Besides, Living in the present is very difficult. Psychology says that our minds wander 46,9 & of the time. For this reason it’s impossible for us to think only about the present. There will always be times when you’ll wonder about the past or the future.
So the goal is to increase our time spent on living in the present and decreasing our time spent in living in the past or in the future.
I’m gonna give you some quick and actionable tips that you can do today, that can help you live more in the present.
1. Watch outside your window or take a walk
This tip may seem weird or stupid but it’s definetily not.
Watch outside your window, take a walk and just be aware of what is going around.
This simple act can actually help you to become more observant, aware and happier. Watch outside your window right after you wake up for 5 or 10 minutes. Watch the clouds as they move, watch the people as they walk or talk, watch the cars as they pass.
Being aware of what is going on and paying attention to your sensations and emotions are the actual tasks for living more in the present moment.
When you watch outside your window or when you take a walk try to be fully aware of where you are and what you are seeing. Most of the times we walk thinking about the things that we are gonna do next and we don’t pay attention to the act of walking or to the route.
This exercise can help you to be more aware and less stressed, and also it can be done whenever you want.
2. Set a timer ( 5 minutes or more) and watch the time go by.
This exercise can also seem stupid but believe me, it’s worth the try.
Take your phone, turn off notifications and set a 5 minutes or more timer.
Most of the times, we take for granted our time and we think that 5 minutes are nothing. This exercise can tell you the contrary. Watching the time go by, doing nothing, can surprise you of the amount of time you are taking for granted.
Like the previous exercise, try to be fully aware of the time. It’s okay to think ( Also because it’s impossible to not do it) but whenever your mind wonders try to be aware of your thoughts, acknowledging them without judgment.
Try this exercise whenever you feel worried, stressed or when you are overthinking. Remember that it’s okay to pause and stop for some minutes. Just slow down and watch the time go by. There is no rush.
3. Meditate. Meditate. Meditate.
I know what you’re thinking. This can seem a clichè, something that everyone recommend.
Well, there’s a reason why everyone recommends to meditate.
Meditation is the act of focus on one thing at a time. It can be your breath, your bodily sensations, the sound around you or even a song that you like.
It can be very hard for a beginner to start meditating. It can be distracting, weird or it may seem useless.
You don’t have to start fancy by meditating a full hour every day. It can literally overwhelm you. Try to meditate 5 minutes or 10 minutes a day. After some time, if you feel like it became an habit, try to meditate for more minutes. If you are new to meditation try some guided meditations on Youtube or try using some apps.
But as I said, start small to have big results.
Also, meditation is not only the act of sitting with your eyes closed and breathing. You can meditate when you eat, when you walk, when you do something you like. This is called mindfulness. The act of simply enjoying what you are doing, focusing on the present, savoring every second that goes by.
4. Capture your life
This is a really cool and fun way to savor your life.
Make photos of what you are eating, what you are doing or simply what you like. Capture your life so whenever you want you can go back and see visually what you were doing in that specific moment.
This can help you to enjoy even the smallest things of life.
Let’s say you are walking and all of a sudden you are amazed by this flower that you see. To remember that sensation and feeling of seeing that flower you can take your phone and capture the flower.
Once in a while, you can see the photo and you will remember instantly the joy and happiness of seeing that flower.
You can also share your photos with other people to let them know the joy of seeing a flower. But don’t over do it. Your life should not be something to show and neither your photos.
Thank you for reading!!
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