9 Ways to Stay Present

Being present means being fully invested in the present moment. I understand defining a word with the same word isn’t entirely useful. Some examples might help. Presence means you’re not thinking about the time you choked up during your middle school play nor are you thinking about the workout you want to get in before the day ends. When you’re present the only thing you’re concerned with is the current moment. As a result, presence allows you to fully experience your life, to be in the here and the now. I want to be more present because I want to savor every moment and experience this world has to offer me. If you want that as well, here are 9 ways you can be more present:

1. Focus on the smells around you. If you’re hiking smell the trees. If you’re at a friends for dinner think about how good the BBQ smells. If you’re studying, light a candle. Take the time to notice and appreciate the smells around you. It brings you into the present moment.
2. If you find yourself feeling cloudy or spacey, then work up a sweat. It brings your mind into your body and allows you to focus on the here and the now.
3. Run cold water on your wrists, drink a glass of water, or take a shower. Focus on the sensation of the water. Water grounds you. It brings you out of your head and into your physical world. You know that feeling when you jump in the ocean? It’s magic. You’re forced into the here and now. Not everyone, including me, is able to jump in the ocean whenever they want. However, you should try it if you have an opportunity. It’s amazing.
4. Deep full breaths will center you. Three seconds in, three seconds out will focus you.
5. Get outside. If you find yourself ruminating or feeling anxious, get outside. Watch the trees sway in the wind, listen to the bird’s chirp, feel the sun. Notice that life is continuing despite what you are thinking about, it helps reconnect you to the now.
6. Be sober. Drinking and smoking doesn’t allow you to be fully present in the moment. If presence is what you’re looking for, take a break from stuff that alters your mind.
7. Change scenery. We have all, at one point or another, become stuck in a routine or a rut. We go to the same restaurants, see the same people, walk our dogs down the same streets. Switch things up, it makes you pay attention.
8. Put the phone away. Don’t even check it. Your phone does everything it can to bring you out of the moment and into a million other moments happening in the techno-universe.
9. Meditation or yoga. Practices like this help us focus our attention. They help us restructure our brains and create new neural pathways. When new neural pathways are formed, we are able to restructure our default patterns and live more actively in a conscious state instead of a reactive state. It makes it easier to make conscious choices instead of doing the same things we’ve always done. 

Presence is a practice that takes time. Be gentle with yourself. The more you practice, the easier it will become!