Mind the presence.

Throughout my golf career, I learned a valuable lesson each time I played:

I play better, physically and mentally, when I am focused on the present.

Don’t focus on the bad shot I hit 2 holes ago, and don’t focus on the difficult hole that is coming up.

Focus on the task at hand.

One shot at a time.

 

When I think about how this relates to everyday life, I think about “one shot” being “one step” at a time.

As someone who loves to plan my life, I find it hard to not look forward to what is coming up on my schedule.

As someone who also loves self-reflection, I find it hard to not focus on things that happened to me recently and how it affects me.

 

Planning and reflecting are important, but I need to stay in the moment.

Keeping my mind in the present helps me power through the feelings of anxiety I get when I am attempting to complete a task.

I always want to go one step at a time – but I often find myself worrying about 3 steps ahead or 3 steps back, instead of the step I’m taking right now.

It is hard to take steps when you can’t see the ground.

 

Staying present, for me, comes from 2 places of thought:

• I want to clear my mind. Give my mind a fresh slate to where all it knows are the feelings of what is occurring around me in that exact moment.
• After I have cleared my mind, I want to observe. Observe all that is going on around me so that I can get the context as to what I’m doing and where I am.

Being able to be conscious of where your mind and body are is not easy, but when you can align them both to the here and now, it makes each and every step seem a bit straighter and solid.

 

Let’s continue to mind the present and make each step in life its very own.