The past, the present, and the future, all have a role to play.
Time as a continuous dimension has to be viewed in terms of past, present, and future for a better understanding of the events in our life.
Every day an infinite number of thoughts come across our mind influenced by the events which have happened, are happening, or will be happening.
These thoughts are the elements of our thinking which help us make decisions in our lives. Seeing a brand new Porsche inspires us to earn enough money to get one for ourselves, coming across the beauty of Amsterdam from Instagram excites us to visit the place during our holidays, or seeing your friends getting married makes you ponder your own life after marriage and the kind of partner you wish to have.
These are all the thoughts inspired by the events you come across in your life.
What we see is a pattern in every thought we have. They are all inspired by something which has already happened, makes us ponder on the life we currently have, and allow us to look at the future prospects of our life.
To elaborate, these are the inherent qualities of every dimension of time:
The past is where experiences, and learnings exist;
The future is where aspirations, ideals, and motivation exists;
and the present is where life exists.
Most of us are stuck in the past. The miseries, the failures, and the struggles we had pushed us down even in our present. We become the slaves of our past rather than being a conqueror of our present.
So what if you were not able to score well in your graduation?
So what if the people you met were miserable to you?
So what if you were not able to utilize your time more efficiently?
The beauty of the past is that it's gone. What you need to take from it are only the experiences you had and the people you met. There's no point in dwelling on the mishappenings you suffered.
Our past molds our personality in ways beyond our comprehension. Every second of the day our personalities are changing and evolving to adapt to our life, which shows us the importance of the present moment.
The next dimension of time is the present moment. It's the most important dimension of our life. Every action that we take is done in the present. The more we work on ourselves, the better we will be able to utilize the present moment. The present is where opportunities lie, where actions take place, where life exists.
The more we are able to control our thoughts to be in the present, the more focused we can be on the things important in our life. No matter how yesterday went, you should always start your day with a fresh mindset filled with belief and hope.
There are different habits and exercises meant to make us more present. From exercise to meditation to ‘no activity time’, all are important in allowing us to be more present.
Even after all such learnings, sometimes the task becomes so overwhelming that we are unable to act on it. During such times we need to remember what Eckhart Tolle calls the ‘Joy of Being’ in his book The Power of Now.
He says, rather than focusing on ‘what’ needs to be done, focus on the ‘how’ of the task. Rather than focusing on the fruits of your action give your attention to the task itself.
This shift in mindset allows you to be more present and enjoy the task itself. Once I shift my focus from writing a blog today to sitting and doing the task, the resistance of hard work goes away and the process takes over making it enjoyable to complete the task.
There’s one other scenario that haunts us while dealing with the present moment. We are so driven towards our goal that we don't want to spend a single moment of our life on things that don't directly align with our goal. In this so-called dedication, we miss out on a lot of experiences that we regret in the future.
Life is meant to be lived in the present and whatever is happening in the present won’t come back for you. So go to your friend's marriage, attend that business event which you always wanted to, there might not be another chance for you to do so.
Future haunts us all. The uncertainty and anxiety of it make us all fear the unknown. How will I give that speech in front of a thousand people? How will I face so many strangers? How will people perceive my writing? All such thoughts of uncertainty make us doubt our abilities and put us in a state of limbo.
What we need to understand is that the future is meant for aspiration and motivation. Your goals help you work hard in the present, allow you to push your lethargy away, and work on the task at hand.
No matter how much we plan, the future always remains uncertain. What we can do is work on our mindset so that we are able to align our thoughts in such a way that they empower us to act rather than derail our progress.
This is why the idea of goal setting is so overrated. It’s important to have goals but if your goal works against your actions towards that goal then what's the point of it? Goals should only be there to guide you in times of uncertainty and helplessness. They should act as the north star giving you direction whenever you are lost.
The future should be filled with hope, excitement, and motivation. A period of your life which empowers you to look forward to the wonders of life.
In the end, the past, the present, and the future all have inherent qualities of their own.
Never mix the 3 with the inherent qualities they have.
If you like my work, please follow to read more such insightful topics.
