How do I seize the day?

[HI :)]

HI all, It's getting cold and dark here in Denmark and I keep getting stuck in a negative pattern of thinking...

I exercise every morning, I journal every day, I went vegetarian, those things helped me gain ALOT mental clarity but not enough... It seems like my problem is my focus (ive always been having some trouble focusing, especially in math class ) , I accidentally keep focussing on my past/future and when I do that I allow ALL sorts of negative thoughts to go through my mind..

Even with that knowledge I just can't seem to concentrate on the now... I guess my question is how do I maintain focus? How do I seize the day?

[ebradlee10]

If you can release the past and realize everything you make it mean is an INVENTION, created by YOU, the better off you'll be.


Laughter helps too...

[Pandora20]

Hey,

I've had/been having a lot of focus problems. In the end it appears that it came down to it that I didn't really think I deserved the focus. The time for myself, for my present, for my now. Other people can have my abundance, but they can't have me - my actions, my thoughts, my focus. Just so, I owe the future and past nothing.

I think I'll (modestly - this may be true for me but not for you) suggest: seize the day by making it yours. You deserve it, not the opinions of those you meet in the present, past, and future.

Great name, btw.

[Andreas]

Following up on what Bradlee said:

DEMARTINI: My mother said to me, when she was putting me to bed when I was four years old, she said, son, before you go in the dream world, be sure to count your blessings, because those who are grateful for that they have, they get more to be grateful for. And I always say that that’s the best way to start each day and end this day is in the state of gratitude.


BECKWITH: We do until embrace the fact that we are here to grow. So that you say, how you to jumpstart? You wake up every day and you want to be different at the end of the day. You don’t want to be the same person you go to bed at night. You want to have had an insight and a haha, you want to have done a new action. You would have said something new, so that you want to see yourself changing and becoming more yourself on a regular basis.


DEMARTINI: I was — I had the opportunity to speak for Mary Kay Ash (ph) many years ago. And I had the opportunity to interview and chat with her afterwards. And I said, Mary, if there’s any advice you could give me — I was in my 20s at the time — for me in my life, what with a you say?

And she said every single morning before you get and start your day, to sit down and write down the seven highest priority actions you could do today, because whoever sets the agenda brings the destiny about. And I started doing that. And I started compiling a list of the things that were truly important to me. And I noticed I increased the probability of those happening in my life just because I concentrated and I took…

Graciously cited from Sourceofmiracles.com

[Nancy Lebovitz]

Tentatively offered, but you're always paying attention to the present--when else is there to pay attention to? It's just that you're currently paying attention to what you're imagining rather than what you believe is a more important part of the present--probably your most current physical sensations.

I'm wondering if part of what's making it difficult is that you think of what you're doing and what you want to do as wildly different from each other. What if you frame it as "I'm always paying attention to the present--what other parts of the present could I notice?"

[Traffic]

The oldest practice for this that I'm aware of, is meditation.

The purpose of meditation is to ground yourself with the present moment, so to do so, you focus on the present; your breathing, a mantra or something similar. It's that simple. In doing so you begin to see the worthless crap that's shuffling around your mind for what it is and you begin to let it go. Once it's gone and you haven't got the distractions you can get back to your focus.

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by HI :)

HI all, It's getting cold and dark here in Denmark and I keep getting stuck in a negative pattern of thinking...

I exercise every morning, I journal every day, I went vegetarian, those things helped me gain ALOT mental clarity but not enough... It seems like my problem is my focus (ive always been having some trouble focusing, especially in math class ) , I accidentally keep focussing on my past/future and when I do that I allow ALL sorts of negative thoughts to go through my mind..

Even with that knowledge I just can't seem to concentrate on the now... I guess my question is how do I maintain focus? How do I seize the day?

Hi

I have a similar situation where in the North West of Ireland we have quite depressing weather: cold, dark, damp, wet etc etc. I am sure there is quite a bit of reserach into S.A.D. which basically says that weather (poor) may effect your mood etc.

I tend to agree with this, although I still believe that we are ultimately in control of our own destiny. We are in the process of moving lock, stock and barrel to Australia, just to enjoy a much better climate.

Keeping focus is, I think, THE major issue for all people who work in a pro-active environment.

I have lost count of the amount of Personal Development books I have read (and enjoyed) but still find myself losing focus after a week or two. Regardless of how much enthusiasm is galvanised initially, it soon seeps away and I find myself back at square one. It is something similar I think, to people who go on diets but continually yo-yo with their weight as they have success-regression-success-regression.

To use Napolean Hill's phrase.."The Master Key to Riches" must be the key that can unlock the enigma of recividivism in respect of the yo-yo effect from personal development to personal deflation.

Finding that key, for me at least, has been an ongoing struggle. I have been in sales now for 10 years this xmas, and have earned first as an employee then as a self employed person, well above the average income in my country.
However, even though this superficial success has helped me financially, I feel personally, that I havent even scratched the surface of my potential.
I am sure there are others out there who might empathise with this position.

[Belle]

Another idea is to begin a daily practice of celebration and appreciation. I find this to be very helpful in maintaining a focus in my now. It's amazing how things really look up, how truly juicy and wonderful your life feels, when you take time each day to celebrate what you have right now.

And this might be semantics, but I find "celebrate" to be even more powerful than "appreciate".

[Alarin]

I accidentally keep focussing on my past/future and when I do that I allow ALL sorts of negative thoughts to go through my mind..

I have the same problem sometimes, but two things have really helped keep my focus on the present and the positive.

The first is something I printed out and stuck to my computer monitor where I spend most of the day - it says "One day at a time". I see this so often now on a daily basis that it's become a way of life for me and I've learnt to focus on today, forget about the past and not worry about the future (I'm organised for it, but not worried).

The second is another printout that I read every morning, and every night put back on my keyboard so I read it again the next morning. It's a summary of my current goals - personal and career - and it takes me only a few minutes to read each morning and makes a huge difference to my day, giving me focus and clarity.

I hope that helps

[Graham]

Taking the time to write in your journal the things your thankful for can also help. I put a reminder to myself weekly to do that.