Do you ever read a whole page of a book and get to the bottom of it and have absolutely no idea what you read and it's not from not understanding what you are reading but because you had let your mind wander? This is just one example of ways people struggle to live in the moment. I did not realize how much I lived outside of the present moment or how much it took my enjoyment out of experiences until I started doing mindfulness activities which called attention to my mind wandering.
I feel people today to don’t live moment to moment. We now feel the need to plan ten steps ahead, are too concerned with others and are preoccupied with comparisons. These things consume our minds and can drain the enjoyment out of activities. When we feel the need to plan ahead of the time we are in, it takes our focus away from the things we are doing right now and the people we are with and creates stress because you start to think of everything you should be doing instead of what you are doing in the here and now. We let other consume our thoughts; concerns about what people are thinking about you, what others might be doing without you, and what you can do to make people like you swarm your mind during social interactions and take joy away from interactions.
Then there are comparisons, the most mindfulness sucking thoughts of them all. It's so easy to do too, we are always one click or head turn away from a constant bombardment of comparisons. There is not one thing in life you can’t take and size up to another person; looks, height, grades, income, experiences, social life and so much more can all be used to compare yourself to another.
Thoughts of comparisons are so automatic and not only can take you away from the moment but also lose sight of all the things you should be grateful for. There are very few situations in which you compare yourself to another person and think positively of yourself, this leads to poor self-esteem and lessen the satisfaction you get from the moment because in your mind it could have been better if you were that other person. It also makes on concentrate and everything we are not or everything we do not have instead of being grateful and focusing on all the things that make us great or the things we do have in our lives. Comparing is a dangerous game to play and usually ends up taking a lot of positive vibes away from you.
Take the time to just take notes of your thoughts and where they wander in different situations. You don’t even need to necessarily redirect your thoughts but just be aware of what you think about and how if affects your enjoyment of the moment. If your up to the challenge you can even try practicing mindfulness and try training your brain to stay in the present.
