Reflections on being present: What does it mean to be here now?

Reflection in the new year. Applications for sport & life.

“Be in the moment.”

“Be here now.”

“Be where your feet are at.”

The mindfulness movement that has grown over the past few years emphasizes being in the present, but I sometimes wonder if the meaning of that gets a bit lost. I think the idea of “be here now” is somewhat intuitive for most, but the focus can become too narrowed. It’s almost as if there’s a paradox to being present.

We can be present for small day to day interactions and performances, but still be caught up in moments of the past, or aspirations of the future. Ironically, this takes us out of the present.

The way I see it, there are layers to being present. It’s not just in the literal here in and now, but also being focused on the current stage of training, current part of the season, or the current stage of your career/life.

The past and the present are not unimportant. We have to be able to learn from mistakes and successes of the past while striving toward goals in the future. But at the same time, it’s easy to become overly absorbed in either of them. It’s no use ruminating on the past, but in rushing to achieve our goals we can just as easily pull ourselves out the present. Patience and presence are complimentary.

Perhaps presence is more than just attending to micro moments of our immediate experience, but also being patient in allowing learning and goal achievement to unfold.