We’re involved in a society built on constant change and overwhelming accessibility to information. An astounding amount of information is literally at our fingertips. Every day we're exposed to various lifestyles and perspectives through the media, especially social media. We can very easily compare how we’re living our day-to-day with how others are living theirs, which can lead to us feeling unfulfilled and desiring change or something better.
This mindset can make it hard to live in the present, appreciate what we have, and be comfortable with staying still in a situation where we’re happy. This can translate to all aspects of our life - being at work, relationships, and our day-to-day activities. It’s easy to get into the habit of not giving these important things our full attention, whereby having only just checked, you’re mentally checking out and looking elsewhere.
Don’t get us wrong, it’s good to move forward, set yourself goals, and focus on how you can get there, but constant pressure on yourself can cause unhappiness and worry, ultimately meaning we forget how to live in the moment.
Practices that can help you to live in the moment
If this sounds like you, then keep reading for some helpful hints and tips on how you can combat the need to constantly look ahead and learn to be happy in the ‘right now.’
Practice mindfulness
Mindfulness can also be referred to as a state of living in the moment. It’s your own awareness and attention to the present. Thoughts are something we can control, yet we often let them control us. Gaining this control back is a skill in itself.
Rather than thinking about being elsewhere or in the future, mindfulness can help us rein these thoughts in and concentrate on what’s happening now. Practising mindfulness has its health benefits, too; it can reduce stress and lower blood pressure. As well as having health benefits, being present through mindfulness helps you to enjoy what’s happening right now and feel less distracted or removed from a situation.
At The CPD Certification Service, we host numerous mindfulness courses on behalf of our CPD providers for both beginners and intermediates alike. Undertaking a CPD course can be a great way to learn about mindfulness and how you can put it into practice yourself.
Positive thinking
By focusing on the positives and acknowledging things that are going well in your life you can learn to appreciate the present and alleviate the pressure of constantly thinking about the future. Drawing your attention to the positive things happening right now (big or small) will help you to realise that there’s no imminent need for change.
Similarly to practising mindfulness, a positive mindset has its health benefits, too. It can relieve stress and provoke a productive outlook. Positive thinking is something that you can actively practice with plenty of materials online, but if you’d like to dive deeper and find out how you can start implementing positive changes and make them a regular part of your life.
Remain focused on one thing
It’s become increasingly normal for us to juggle multiple things at once - at home and in the workplace, all with different priorities. It’s rare that we sit and enjoy one thing; if we’re cooking dinner, we’re also on our phones, listening to music and chatting to someone, all at the same time.
Although multitasking sometimes can’t be avoided, focusing on just one thing at some point in the day can help you be more present in that moment. By giving the current task your full attention, you’ll potentially enjoy it more and notice and appreciate, the smaller things you may not have done if you were balancing multiple tasks at once.
Focusing on one thing at once may help improve your concentration and make it easier for you to quiet the background noise of intrusive thoughts and distractions when you want to be present. Hopefully, by practicing living in the moment, you’ll relieve yourself of stress and unnecessary pressure, improving your overall happiness and day-to-day life.
Established in 1996, The CPD Certification Service is the largest and leading independent Continuing Professional Development accreditation organisation working across all sectors. Within our CPD Courses Catalogue, there are a range of certified courses that can benefit you. You can search by industry or by using the search bar to find relevant learning for your personal and professional development.
We hope this article was helpful. If you are looking to become a CPD Provider, please contact our team to discuss your requirements in more detail. Alternatively if you are looking to record your CPD, please go to the myCPD Portal where you can manage, track and log your learning in one simple place.
