How to Start Living One Day at a Time
You may have heard this expression, or even been told you should start doing it. However, we don’t always know what it means or how to implement it. It’s a popular saying in twelve-step rooms, and in many mindfulness and yoga practices. So, how do we actually start living one day at a time?
Living in the Moment
To live in the moment means to allow ourselves the opportunity to fully experience what life has to offer. Rather than worrying constantly about the future or dwelling in the past, we can be present for the day in front of us. It takes work and training, but we can cultivate the ability to really live one day at a time.
This is just one of many benefits of life coaching. We can learn to be present and live in the moment. The stressors of tomorrow and regrets of yesterday no longer eat at us. Instead, we are able to learn from past experiences, handle what we need to today, and deal with the future when it arrives.
Ways to Live One Day at a Time
There are many ways to work toward living one day at a time. Here are a few tips from our coaches, and to dive deeper be sure to reach out to one of our trained mindfulness coaches.
1. Practice Mindfulness Meditation
There are many types of meditation, and mindfulness is just one. Mindfulness is the practice of training the mind to clearly recognize and see the present time experience. Like other forms of meditation, it takes time to work. With dedication, mindfulness meditation can help us to live here and now, present with our moment to moment experience. You can also practice mindfulness through mindfulness activities and exercises.
2. Make Daily Lists
One hindrance to living in the moment that we often face is the need to get things done. We have long to-do lists, bigger projects to handle, and things we have been meaning to do for weeks. Instead of overwhelming yourself, make a little list for your day of what you want to get done. Every morning, create a list on paper or your computer. Just include the tasks you want to complete today, and focus on the one day in front of you. One day at a time with your list!
3. Create Plans for Long-Term Goals
There are quite a few benefits of goal setting, and just as many of actually creating actionable plans. With the help of a life coach, you can create healthy goals for the long term. Then, you can create your plan day-by-day. Instead of focusing on the big picture every day, you can focus on the one task or stepping stone right in front of you. This helps keep you in the here and now, rather than worrying about your long-term plan.
4. Make Room for Fun
One of the unhealthy ways we cope with stress is to ignore that life is stressful and not take care of ourselves. Instead, we can make specific effort to go out and play. Recognizing that we experience anxiety and stress, we can encourage the emotional experience to move through us so we can leave it. We don’t need to carry the stress over from one day to another. Instead, spend some time letting loose. Schedule some time in to take care of yourself, kick back, and enjoy yourself. A bit like a reset button before the next 24 hours.
5. Set Reminders
Finally, use the technology that is always surrounding us to live in the one day we have. Set reminders on your phone or computer to arrive back in the present moment, to return to your list of things to do, or to pause and meditate. These reminders throughout the day can help us return to our intention when we’re totally stuck in autopilot or wandering.
