How to Live In The present
If you’re reading this, it means Baby N°2 is here and my pre-written blog content has officially begun. I didn’t pre-write anything before Capri was born and remember wishing I had so over the next month or so, you’ll be reading pieces I wrote while I was waiting to go into labor. I felt like I had a lot of blog ideas while sitting around waiting and it was honestly a peaceful time to write. SO with that, let’s get into today’s post…on being present.
TBH I don’t feel like I’m great at this but it’s something I’ve been working on, especially since having Capri and even more now that I’ll have two babies to balance. I think being a parent is a welcomed slap in the face when it comes to being present because you realize how quickly they change and how being present with them is the most important thing. I still value work tremendously and need the balance of working and mom life, but it means that whether I’m in work mode or mom mode, I need to be THERE. 100% present. Here’s how I do it:
+ Airplane mode
2020 was a dark place on social media and the trolls came out to play more thane ver. And while some of the important stuff that happened in 2020 made me want to be more active on social, a lot of it was a turnoff because of how much negativity was filling the space, my DMs included. I won’t go into detail but I really struggled with turning off my phone at time during high-stress issues. Around this time, I started using Airplane Mode more when I was not in work mode. This blocks notifications, texts included, and is the easiest way to essentially block out your phone.
+ Do one thing at a time
I’m a natural multi-tasker…I think our entire generation is…and while it has its upsides, it’s one of the reasons we all suck at living in the present. So as much as I have to force myself and slow down, it really helps to wind down and feel more at peace. Even if I’m working, I try to do one thing at a time instead of talking to my team while doing an email while checking DM’s mid email. And then with Capri or in my home life, I do one chore at a time or sit down and play with Capri without worrying about the laundry or whatever. Again, this is HARD but I’m working on it!
+ Leave your phone in the other room
Paul has pushed me to do this more on weekends and I love when it happens. It’s one small thing everyone can do and it instantly makes you live more in the present since you don’t have your phone in arm’s reach. It’s pretty crazy how many times I go to reach for it on auto-pilot so it’s a learning curve for sure.
+ No tech at dinner
This is another thing I’d like us to get better at, and most of the time we are. Dinner time is sacred family time for us and I’d like to instill the rule of ‘no phones at the dinner table’ so it’s one time of day where we can all be present and interact. Obviously this isn’t too important now but as our kids get older I don’t want them using their phones as their dinnertime entertainment – I’d rather us all talk.
+ Don’t always have a plan
Between Paul and I, we have most of our lives mapped out. Whether it’s what we’re having for dinner that week or our 5-year business plan, we both thrive on a plan. And for the most part I think that’s a good trait but it can also feel like we’re always looking to the present. Quarantine has actually been good for this because it involved less planning, especially on the weekends, when we could wake up and decide what we felt like doing (or not doing) instead of always having something on the calendar. I’m going to keep trying to make space for less of a plan in life instead of always thinking of what’s next.
+ Stop and celebrate
In the same vein as not planning as much, I’m a big believer of celebrating milestones, even small ones. With both of our brands and constant launches or new things happening, there was a time where I felt like we weren’t celebrating our accomplishments or hitting goals – we were too busy planning for the next. Now that we have a time in-house, it’s forced us to slow down and have a toast to a launch or whatever and I’m into it.
Don’t forget to do the same in your own life, whether celebrating something big or small. I think it helps live more in the present!
What do you do to live in the present?