Am I paying enough attention to the things that are important in my life or am I getting caught up in the minutia?
Maybe I’m thinking about this issue because I have so many balls in the air right now – work, kids, personal life. Whatever the reason, there’s one thing I know for sure – attention is really all we have in life. Of course, time is critical and people say that all we have is time, but if we are not paying attention, time will fly by and we’ll have missed it all. Paying attention is the key.
I was at the Walker last night and I did the unthinkable — I shut my phone off! I wanted to just experience the works rather than listening for the buzz of my phone. It was amazing! I could actually see things in various pieces that I had never seen before. It got me thinking even more about how I am multi-tasking in my mind all the time!
There are so many things in life that we can’t control and we really shouldn’t worry about those things. Instead, we should be focused on living in the now. We should focus on the feelings of others, even if it means putting ours to the side (that’s a tough one). We also should be able to stop – even for just a moment – and enjoy just where we are. In other words, we really should try to be (as often as we can) fully engaged in life.
While our lives have gotten faster, our brains have not changed much. So, how do we improve our ability to focus and concentrate — to be present? We have to make sure that our attention is intentional and is not out of habit. We must take care of ourselves so we have the energy to focus. We must take time to slow down and examine our priorities – including those important people in our lives. We have to set our intentions to be present.
The decisions we make about where to direct our attention will also make the difference between a life filled with happiness or one filled with sadness and stress. In a world where so many forces compete for our attention, it is more important than ever to develop the ability to choose where to focus our attention.
So today, focus on being present – present for your kids, your partner and/or yourself. Look at your life and make sure that the things that are really important to you – are receiving your full attention. It will become habit-forming!
Have a fantastic day!
theyearof50 