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Written By: Smruthi Gelli
Do you ever find yourself dreading Sunday nights because you just cannot wait another five days to enjoy the weekend again? You might even be able to relate to something as minute as randomly cringing at something you might have said 7 years ago on a random day at a park. You would be lying if you said that experiencing these feelings which tend to take your mind off the task at hand, don’t make you a little less happy. In fact, research shows that occurrences like these happen nearly half the time and tend to make people consistently less happy (Guardian).
This is a crucial issue because it causes people to fear what might happen next and even prevent them from trying new experiences. In many cases, this is even the cause of academic burnout as students are constantly pressured to think about what they need to do next to perform up to par.
According to Arlin Cuncik, here are some tips to follow in order to practice living in the moment.
Notice your surroundings: It’s important to take time out of your day to actually look around and observe what’s going on around you.
Focus on one thing at a time: You can actually be more productive when fully focusing on one task rather than trying to multitask at all at once.
Be grateful for what you have now: When you constantly think about wanting something you don’t have, you don’t take the time out of your day to appreciate what you actually do have.
I challenge you to try this daily routine: Take an empty jar, a writing utensil, and a few sticky notes. Everyday before you go to bed, write down something you are grateful for on the sticky note and drop it in the jar. Then, set a time, perhaps a month later or even a year later, to remove all the sticky notes and read them to yourself. You will realize how happy you can be with what you do have rather than feeling bad about something you wish you had.
Show Acceptance: It is also important to accept the way things may go and stop trying to think about what could have gone better in a certain situation. It is important to understand that you cannot change what may have happened. Additionally, constantly replaying the same situation over and over in your head can negatively impact your mood and eventually your mental health.
Practice meditation: Meditating will allow you to focus on yourself, specifically on your thoughts and feelings.
I would say, even if it is for 5-10 minutes, close your eyes and focus on the moment. Try not to let your thoughts wander, especially to stressful thoughts and feelings. While doing so, also incorporate some deep breathing that consist of slow breaths . That way, while focusing on your breath, you can focus on yourself. This even allows you to have more control over the task at hand.
By doing this, you can even learn more about yourself as you listen to what you like and dislike and how you felt in certain instances throughout the day.
Find positive social support: Find people that will bring you up and listen to you. Find people that will make you happy and allow you to be the true version of yourself. Hanging out with these people will only help you open up more and give you an avenue to destress in the moment.
Be mindful of everything you do: Last but not least, it is important to be aware of how often you indulge in certain activities, especially if they create lethargic tendencies. Spending too long on activities such as scrolling on the phone or watching TV can inevitably decrease attention span and reduce cognitive thinking, which is one of the many reasons our minds tend to wander when completing certain tasks.
These are just a few that I thought were really important, but you may find something more helpful than how somebody else finds a certain strategy. You may not even like a certain strategy that works for another person. It’s like studying for an exam. Writing the information out may help one person effectively memorize information while another person might need to play games using the information to help them better prepare. Just like this, people may experience the issue described in this blog at completely different levels. This means, each person should be able to find what works for them and what helps them stay focused.
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