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Today's post was written by Henri Junttila. Henri writes at Wake Up Cloud, where he covers topics such as 33 Powerful Ways of Overcoming Fear. He also has a free eCourse that teaches you how to find your passion in 5 days or less. Be sure to stop by his site and check it out!
Everyone goes through challenging times, but most people don’t know how to deal with them. They end up digging themselves into a hole of negativity that they cannot get out of. For many this leads to relentless self-sabotage. The good news is that there are ways to deal with negativity through increasing the time you spend in the present moment. It’s not easy, and it’s not an overnight fix, but it works, and it will transform your life if you let it. Here’s how you do it …
5 Ways to Stay Present in Challenging Times
1. Curiosity
When you run into challenges, your mind will start racing. It will start looking at all the things that are going wrong, and all the things that can go wrong. This is when you have to become curious. Notice how your mind is getting out of control. Observe the feelings that you are experiencing without judgment. Become the watcher of your inner space, and remember that you are not your thoughts. We have a tendency to get immersed in our thoughts and believe that they are real, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. You are the watcher behind your thoughts.
2. Mindset
My mindset has always helped me get through tough times, because every challenge I face I see as an opportunity for personal development. It’s easier said than done, I know, but even a small shift in perspective makes a big difference in how you feel and how well you cope with what is happening. Life is an adventure full of ups and downs. You will never get rid of negativity altogether, so you might as well accept it and use those challenges to grow.
3. Awareness
Without a doubt, one of the most important parts of staying present during challenging times is your awareness. Awareness allows me to keep watching my thoughts even as I am writing this. It allows me to feel my fingers type and my muscle move. It will help you notice whenever negative thoughts emerge. A sure-fire sign that you’ve got intruders (negative thoughts) inside is when you start feeling bad. Thoughts precede feelings. When you feel bad, go inside and notice what thoughts are causing it, and get curious about them. Look at what the thoughts are about, notice how the feeling feels, and how it acts. Stay in the now, and allow your thoughts and feelings to be where they are.
4. Meditation
Meditation is a powerful ally. Simply sitting down, closing your eyes, and breathing for 10 minutes can help you accept what you’re going through. It will calm you down, increase your awareness and infuse your life with happiness. It’s not going to transform your life in an instant. It is a practice that needs to be used consistently, but even small amounts of it can go a long way. If you feel yourself slipping out of the now and drowning in negativity, take a time out, sit down, take five deep breaths, close your eyes, and focus all your attention on your breath for 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can focus your attention on your heart, or you can simply observe your thoughts and feeling rush by, like fish in a stream. Everything will pass sooner or later. Thoughts come and go. People come and go, and we come and go.
5. Passion
I know passion is kind of weird to throw in here, but hear me out …You see, when you’re living a life full of passion, you will have a much easier time staying present and tackling the challenges that come up. Years ago, when I was a professional poker player, the challenges I ran into devastated me. Each small thing was like being punched in the stomach by Mike Tyson. It wasn’t pretty, and it certainly wasn’t fun. When I finally let go and summoned enough courage to go after my passion, things started going much more smoothly. Challenges still happen, but I am more motivated than ever to get through them. They help me grow, and my passion helps me stay in the present moment.
When you are in the now, you automatically accept what is going on. When challenges pop up, we tend to spin negative stories in our heads, which only make everything worse. Be aware of what goes on inside, accept it, and stay with it. Become a child when it comes to your negative emotions … explore them, play with them, and embrace them unconditionally.
This post was written by Henri Junttila, author of Wake Up Cloud. As I mentioned, he also has a free eCourse that teaches you how to find your passion in 5 days or less. If you're struggling to fin your passion in life, don’t miss it!
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