You might recall that last week I asked you to think about your answer to this question:
"If you are not living "in the moment", just WHEN are you living?"

As I see it, there are three times: past, present and future. I believe that while it is important to think about the past and the future, it is very dangerous to LIVE in either of these times. Last week I talked about living in the past. Now let's look at the dangers of living in the future.

I should start by clearly stating that I'm not advocating that you ignore the future and abandon forward-thinking goals and dreams. It is very important to plan your future and work towards it. The danger comes from looking EXCLUSIVELY at the future and ignoring the present moment.

Living in the future carries two dangers:

1. We might never start living. In my "What's YOUR Expiry Date?" presentation, I talk about "the once trap". Too often we are waiting for something to happen before we allow ourselves to start living.
   "Once I get the promotion..."
   "Once I finish MBA..."
   "Once I weigh a certain amount..."

All too often we get so caught up in "the once trap" that we forget that ONCE is exactly how many times today comes around! We need to be mindful of this and make the most of every moment that we have.

2. We can be so goal-oriented that we don't take time to appreciate what we've already achieved. Consider a dieter who obsesses so much over losing the last five pounds that they forget to rejoice over how much they've already lost.

There is another danger with living for the future... what happens to you when you get there? In his autobiography, astronaut Buzz Aldrin said that after walking on the moon, everything else in life seemed insignificant. This is clearly a person who was so focused on one goal for so long, that he forgot that simply walking on THIS planet each day is a tremendously significant achievement.

Last week I urged you to learn the lessons that your past has to teach and then move beyond them into the present! This week I caution to you simply visit the present in order to help you plan and set goals. Now is the only time that truly matters because now is the only time we can work with. Living a mindful life provides a luxury that few people allow themselves - the luxury of enjoying things RIGHT NOW!

Have a great week and remember ...

ENJOY NOW!

Copyright (c) 2003-2004, all rights reserved.
National Library of Canada ISSN 1708-0606

You may copy, forward or distribute Mindful Moment provided that this copyright notice and full information for contacting Patrick Mathieu are included.

Contact him at: http://www.mathieu.com or email patrick@mathieu.com.