Have you ever been so focused on your goal or target that you forget to enjoy the process?
It is easy to focus only on the task at hand, and to ignore what else is going on around you. When I compete in triathlons, they are often located in natural environments. West China has some stunning scenery and a race in Jia Yu Guan was beautiful. The sky was blue, white clouds everywhere and the lake reflecting the sky magnificently. As I was racing around the lake on my bike, I looked across the vista and said to myself, “This is absolutely awesome. How lucky am I to be here right now!” By bringing myself to the presence moment I enhanced my enjoyment of the experience and this I believe also helped contribute to my good performance. One of the reasons I haven’t entered the Shanghai Marathon is that the route is basically running down an urban freeway. Not exactly inspiring. So when I am in these far flung places I really owe it to myself to take the most from each moment.
How can you take the most from each moment? Taking a “pause” or “time out” during your day and asking yourself, “What is magnificent about this moment, right now?”. If you can’t think of anything, just take a few breathes and observe your breathe coming in and going out. If you do this for 30 seconds, you will feel more relaxed and ready to get back to your day. It turns off your mental chatter and suspends the moment.
Do yourself a favour, lower your stress and increase your enjoyment of each day by finding out what is magnificent about this moment right now.