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Are You “In the Moment?” No, I Mean REALLY “In the Moment?”

By LeaderTalk Contributor — December 29, 2008 1 min read
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I’m guessing that most of us are in the middle of some type of holiday break right now with several days off from school. Or without staff and students for those of us who still plan on going into work. If you are anything like me, the days have been filled with the hustle and bustle of shopping, wrapping, cooking, cleaning, driving, eating, drinking, talking, laughing and then probably a repeat of many of those same activities over and over.

It’s now a few days before the New Year. 2008 is almost over. I tend to get reflective this time of year and wonder where the time has gone. I think of all the things I have done and could of/should of done. I am sure many of us think of the projects we should be starting, the books/blogs we should be reading, the family/friends we should be connecting with, the papers we should be writing, the initiatives we should be implementing, the progress we should be making. Sometimes I feel like I can’t keep up or that I am not doing a good enough job in both my work and personal life. Ever feel like that?

But for right now, I just want you to try and be “in the moment.” Take an hour or half a day or the next couple of days and just slow your thinking and focus on the here and now. Don’t think of all the things that you think “should be happening.” Just be in the present and absorb it. Be appreciative of where you are, right now, in this life. Be grateful for all you have been given up to this moment. You are doing the best that you can. You are making a difference. Look, REALLY look, around you and see all that is there.

We don’t know what 2009 will bring. No matter where we are in this life, whether this is our first year of a leadership position or our last, we don’t know for sure what 2009 will bring. And that’s OK. Because for right now, for these last few moments of 2008, we are going to treat ourselves to the present. And fully savor it.

Reggie Engebritson

[cross-posted at the old LeaderTalk blog (including comments)]

The opinions expressed in LeaderTalk are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.