The Time is Now to Conquer Your Fears
I am a strong proponent of both learning from past experiences and of setting effective goals for the future, I encourage people to be cautious of losing the power of the moment they are in.
Many of our students frequently ask “How can I become more effective?” or “How can I improve how I feel throughout the day?” or “How do I remove stress from the situations that I am facing?” I believe the answers to those questions and most challenges people face can be found by focusing on the present moment.
All mental fears, whether that is stress, fear of failure, anxiety, worry, doubt, regret or others, result from focusing on events that have already happened (which you no longer have any control to change) or future events that you image to be unpleasant (which are not real, but simply part of your imagination). The only reality that we face lives in the present moment.
In his New York Times bestseller, The Power of Now
While that statement may seem harsh, for most people it is true. How often do most people sit back and calmly think about how wonderful their life is today or how great the future is going to be? By removing harmful or useless thinking, it is naturally replaced with either a focused or open mind. This results in progress from one moment to the next, which leads to remarkable growth and improvement over time.
Being present mentally inserts more care, quality and joy into ALL activities and removes unnecessary concern. So take care to add extra focus to the things that are right in front of you, the things that are REAL, and many of your imagined challenges will begin to fade away.
Be FREE!
Eric Plantenberg
President
Very nice. It comes at a time where I have consistently focusing on the end of the month, the end of the month. Where will I end up for the month? It has not served me well so far. This article hits home with me to stay in the present, because I may not even be here at the end of the month, but I am HERE, NOW. Thanks again Eric.
Comment by alan — September 15, 2008 @ 12:03 pm
Thank you for the reminder Eric. It is easy to get caught up in the “what if’s.” The only real situations are the present ones. I find if I am not taking action on what lies immediately in front of me I create fuel for the “what if’s” I imagine.
Comment by loren — September 16, 2008 @ 2:42 am
Yes!! I love the idea that if we remove the harmful & useless thinking what will take it’s place, what has to take it’s place is the harmonic & useful thinking. This WILL allow more growth, peace, centeredness, a clearer focus, goodness and all those great things that make us such extraordinary people in this world. Thanks for sharing this thought.
Comment by David Shoup — September 16, 2008 @ 7:42 pm
Amen! It’s pointless to waste energy on things that
aren’t “real”. If everyone would focus on the NOW and
just take things as they come, people wouldn’t be
worrying for nothing and would probably be a lot
happier!
Comment by Bobbi Schmitt — September 18, 2008 @ 4:28 pm