“I want to be more present, I want to live in the now!”  No problem!  No, seriously, it’s time to stop making ‘presence’ a problem in your life or something else you consider yourself not very good at.  You can’t get this one wrong!  It’s simple (now you know The Burnout Queens like simple) all you have to do is to turn up your awareness because…

You are already living in Now!

It all goes terribly ‘wrong’ when you think you should, ought to, or need to be present.  You can’t think your way to being present!  So, what does ‘being present’ or as we prefer ‘living in Now’ actually mean?

Well lovelies, Now is simply a state of being conscious and aware.

Living in Now is to be experienced, not thought about or analysed, and Now is definitely not about doing.  In fact our cultural obsession with doing takes us away from Now.  You are right here in Now, even right now so to speak!  All you have to do is learn to pay attention on purpose!

Many of you want to know ‘how’ to live in Now, so here is the one really important thing to remember, you must pay attention without judgement!  Oh we can hear you groaning, but it’s not as hard as you think.  The minute you hear yourself editorialising about your experience you’ve left Now and travelled into the land of should of, could of, would of, if only or what if…none of which have anything to do with Now.  When you start time travelling, ask yourself…

What’s happening right Now?  What’s real right Now?

Sometimes it’s difficult realising how ‘in Now’ we really are because we get lost by constantly running off into the future or into the past.  If you want to enjoy living today you have to stop ruminating and worrying about what’s happening tomorrow or next week or resenting or regretting what did or didn’t happen yesterday.

We can remember the past and plan for the future, but the only place we can live in is Now!
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Living in Now is not a difficult skill.  It’s not going to take years of learning some new philosophy or form of meditation.  It takes a bit of extra effort to pay attention at first, like anything new, and you have to have patience with yourself.  Beyond that, we know that as soon as this idea ‘clicks’ for you it will become pretty natural.

Try any of these tiny, simple ways to entice your consciousness back to Now.  For instance, while sitting at my desk right now I can,

♦       Take a big deep breath (instantly brings you into your body)

♦       Ask, ‘Am I physically comfortable or stiff and achey?’

♦       Look out the window and actually see the weather, trees, birds

♦       Ask, ‘Am I hungry or thirsty?’

♦       Check, ‘Has my office become too cold or warm?’

♦       ‘Tune in’ and listen to the classical piece on the radio.

These are all about pausing and cueing yourself to the present by observing ‘how’ you are at that particular moment in time.  With consistency this way of staying aware will literally become a no-brainer.  It will, in fact, become automatic and natural.

You can also practice being more actively aware in small ways.  For instance I can stop and:

♦       Run my hands over the arms of my chair and feel of the wood.

♦       Quietly watch my breath rise and fall for a few minutes.

♦       Look around my desk and observe… the antique lamp I love, the ‘smiling pig’ birthday card, my ‘goal’ post it note to self, and my Grandpa’s old letter opener.

The secret to being present is believing that whatever you are experiencing or doing at this very moment in time, big or small, is important.

Living in Now, starts as a skill that needs a bit of practice and then blossoms into a beautiful natural way of being in your world.  Here’s my confession, I am a true thinking, reflecting, analysing HSP (Highly Sensitive Person) so it’s pretty easy for me to drift off into my thoughts and ideas.  So whether it’s gently bringing myself back to a conversation or task or staying in touch with my physical, emotional and spiritual self, living in Now is something I actively and consciously practice and enjoy each and every day.

Here’s another little secret, many of our Burnout Queens talk about needing more focus in their day or in their lives in general.  Well, live in Now and you ARE focused!  Plain and simple!

You may have noticed that we have capitalised Now, kind of like it’s the capital city of Aware!  Well, that’s because we want you to consider it a wonderful place to BE, think of it kind of like the emerald city of Oz.

For it to work in the world of the Burnout Queens it has to be simple, practical, inspirational, and yes quirky!  We want you to be able to simply say to yourself ‘Go to Now’.  After all, when you live in Now,

Now IS now!

So click your ruby red heels and BE there…or be square!

Until Next Time…Grab Life by the Crown!

P.S.  The BOQs would love to hear from you!  Leave your wisdom and comments in the box below.

PPS!  The Burnout Queens have a special invitation waiting for you…

We would love you to be part of our exclusive members only club for women, The Realm!