The state of being ‘present'

What does it mean to be present?...ask Michael Landers founder and President, Culture Crossing, Inc. and Timothy Dukes, a veteran psychotherapist and leadership advisor. They are also co-authors, Present Company: Cultivating Cultures of High Performance in Teams and Organizations.

- Michael Landers and Timothy Dukes

MYTH 1: You must quiet your mind

It is quite the opposite. To open yourself up to what the present moment can offer, you do not need your mind to go silent. You need to increase your awareness of your surroundings and how you are experiencing them. Recognise the signals—smell, sound, taste, sight, or feeling— that your senses are sending to your brain. By simply bringing those sensations into sharper focus, a feeling of presence will start to emerge. This is the key to developing the sensitivity and the skill to stay present in every moment. As you enter a state of presence, hidden sights, sounds, and feelings begin to emerge. There may be new revelations, or recognition of things that you had forgotten.

MYTH 2: Being present means having a single focus