There’s a powerful scene at the end of The Peaceful Warrior (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0438315/) where Dan Millman is preparing for his competition in gymnastics routine. As he’s on the rings, upside down, we hear a conversation in his head….
“Dan, where are you?” Socrates asks.
The Peaceful Warrior
“Here,” he softly replies.
“What time is it?” Socrates asks.
“Now,” Dan replies.
“What are you?” asks Socrates.
“This moment,” Dan declares.
And then he goes on to perform an award winning gymnastics routine – because he has invested the time to build himself for this moment, and he engages himself to be fully present in the moment.
As I reflected on that the other day, it occurred to me. Like Dan Millman, I am unshakable, unflappable, unstoppable when I’m fully engaged in the moment. And when I’m not, well….
Getting to the point where I’m fully present in the moment…for me, that’s not always an easy thing. I have a lot going on in my life. And setting aside any one of those things – mentally letting go of it, even for an hour – that sometimes feels like I’m dropping the ball, like I’m failing.
What I’ve come to realize, however, is that not being fully present in the moment – that’s actually what dropping the ball looks like.
So here’s what I’ve done to reconcile those two, to position myself to feel good about temporarily letting go of things so that I can be fully engaged, fully present in the moment.
Tools to support “letting go”
1. Setting up reminders so I don’t have to spend brain cycles trying to remember: Cortana and To Do
If you’re on a Windows platform, Cortana is built-in. For iOS, Mac, and Android users, the Cortana app is available in the app store. In my experience, Cortana is far superior to Siri when it comes to comprehending natural language. I have the app on the sticky bar on my iPhone, and with a simple tap, I just speak, “Remind me to write a blog post about the peaceful warrior tomorrow morning at 10:00,” and Cortana just gets it. And, because everything is linked through my Microsoft account, that reminder appears on all my devices through Cortana and the Microsoft To Do app – on my Surface Book, my iPhone, my MacBook, and my HTC Android phone.
2. Stream of consciousness and other notes: OneNote
Like Cortana and To Do, Microsoft OneNote is available for free in all the app stores. When I have one of those “Holy Cow! That was an amazing thought I just had! I need to get that down on paper before I forget it (while I’m driving down I-10 at 80 miles per hour)!” moments, I turn to OneNote. I can embed a voice recording to transcribe later, or I can have Siri send a short email message to OneNote and it will be delivered into my notebook.
3. Diagrams and Doodles: Whiteboard
Microsoft Whiteboard is another app freely available in all the app stores. I use it like virtual or digital paper – to sketch out the things that are floating around in my head. And, because the app allows simultaneous sharing and syncing, it’s a great tool for collaborative brainstorming.
The outcome
When I use them, these tools support me by holding onto important things. They support me in “not dropping the ball.” They support me being fully engaged and “in the moment.” And being fully engaged in the moment propels me forward.
What mechanisms support you in being fully engaged and present in the moment?
