“Wherever you are, be there totally.” -Eckhart Tolle

Do you ever catch how not in the moment we can be? Sometimes we get so caught up in capturing the moment (whether through videos or phones) that we forget to experience the moment.

How often do you really, actually go back through those pictures in your phone? (….And looking for something specific, just to show someone something doesn’t count.)

What does it take to grab your attention? To hold your attention? And how long do I have it before you’ve moved on to something else?

We live in a fast-paced time…so much so that sometimes we effortlessly get upset when things don’t work even faster…or is an inconvenience for us..

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE AIRPLANE DOESN’T HAVE WIFI?!?!?!“

So now what Dani?? And what does this have to do with Affinities??

When we’re engaging in our Affinity, it’s usually because we want to escape our reality.

If we create a reality that we love, then we won’t have a need to escape from it, right?

When we create a reality we love, next comes the practice of enjoying it, taking it in….savoring your favorite food, rather than just chowing down to satiate our appetite.

Deeply breathing in the smell of your dish soap when you wash the dishes. Feeling the bubbles on your hands.

Slowing down and enjoying a bath or shower. How does the water feel on your skin?

These strange-sounding suggestions comes from an area of psychology called Mindfulness(Dialectical Behavior Therapy, also known as DBT).

Mindfulness and Focus are like sisters 🙂 If you’re being mindful, you’re focusing on the present moment.

Here are 5 ways I recommend will support you in finding Focus:

1. Tune in to your 5 senses at the moment you are in. Sense of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. In other words, what do you see right now other than this text? What are you hearing right now? What can you smell? What is the taste in your mouth? What are you touching at the moment?

2. Practice listening to others without making judgment. Just pure observation. No opinions.

3. Stop for a minute and check into your breathing pattern. Are you breathing rapidly? From your belly or your chest?

4. Try to take notice of when you zone out. For example, while brushing your teeth, or driving.. (I’ve had clients share with me not remembering getting to close by destinations, from zoning out while driving)

5. Spend time in nature. I think we sometimes forget that we’re human beings. If all else fails in this list, go to the beach, or a park, whatever form of nature is closest to you…sit in that environment for 5 TECHNOLOGY-FREE minutes.

I hope I engaged you enough to keep your focus to the end of this article 😀

love always,

dani