nearest to us every day.
Use mindfulness to increase your awareness of life’s true abundance. Recognize opportunities for positive change, and then create that change using the problem solving steps that were discussed earlier.
You will find in time that your PRESENT self will always be good enough for now, and the PRESENT moment will always contain exactly what you need if you can truly just be there. Everywhere we go for instance, there is air to breath, opportunity to lead, and a chance to live by example. Be thankful, be present, and enjoy the journey.
THE TRAINING PLAN
Mission: Begin where you are.
Phase I:
Identify a current challenging situation in your life. Pick something you view as difficult because we will be using it throughout Phase I. What have you experienced in the past that might help you today? What advice might your future self offer?
Phase II:
Designate three sessions this week to complete the following exercises.
DAY ONE: If you relate well to music, then look up the song ‘A Letter to Me’ by Brad Paisley, and listen to the words. To begin, think about your past self for a minute or two. Consider zoning in on who you were during or prior to some major obstacle in your previous life. Perhaps you are still in the midst of that challenge. You can go back as far as you wish. Now, write a letter from your present self to your past self. Make it personal, and make it count. Would your past self have any useful words about who you are now? If so, what would he or she say? If you are willing and able, write the following statement in your journal, and then read it aloud, “I accept my past for what it has been. Today is an opportunity to improve my past, for my actions on this day will become my past tomorrow.”
DAY TWO: Think about your future self for a minute or two. What will you be like 12 weeks, 12 months, or 12 years from today if you continue on your current path? Now imagine you could change anything about the way you live starting with today (which you can), and the result would be your ideal future self. Now, write a letter from that future self to your present self. Provide advice, warning, assurance, or encouragement as your future self would deem necessary. Make it personal, and consider changes that you might make based on this exercise. How might your present self respond? Finally, If you are willing and able, write the following statement in your journal and then read it aloud, “What has yet to occur, cannot be taken from me. I will strive to live by example, and adapt myself in healthy ways to this ever-changing world.”
DAY THREE: Using the insights gained during the first two exercises, summarize your own life story up until today. Can you accept this as reality, and begin this journey from here? Are you satisfied with who you are, and the legacy you would leave if your life ended today? What changes would you like to make, if any? As we continue, keep your story in mind. Consider what might make your true story more interesting and inspiring to both yourself and others. Finally, put a reminder in your phone or on your calendar to come back and re-write the story once you have finished all three phases of this adventure. How you tell it, and how it ends, are up to you. Just keep it truthful, and be honest with yourself. Use what you have to create a story that you can be proud of.
Phase III:
First of all, select a mentor who has either completed this entire book, or is willing to join you on the adventure. Ask him or her to hold you accountable for leading by example, and working on each mission. Make time to talk each week, and work together to overcome pitfalls with cooperation and creativity. The journey will be as fun and rewarding as you make it.
For the following month, do something significant each day that you will be proud of. Consider choices that would add meaning and inspiration to your true life story from Phase II. Keep track of your efforts using the behavioral tracking calendar in this book (there’s one in each chapter). Circle the choices or actions that you were most proud of, and document why you think that was so. Practice accepting who you have become. Slow down, and take time to appreciate the little things all around you. Notice changes in your environment as you create a new life for yourself. Continue this for one month, and then move on to the next mission.
We also suggest using this month to begin re-writing the story that you summarized in Phase II of this mission. Has the story changed? Would you be able to end it more positively now than before? If not, how might the story be influenced by your daily task this month (doing something significant that you’d be proud of)?
As a bonus, Google the terms ‘mindfulness,’ and ‘Top Ten Unhelpful Thinking Styles’ and discover how practicing certain core techniques can increase your ability to live responsibly in the here and now. You can also search for articles or books about ‘Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction .’ Practice these techniques daily for added benefit. Keep these tools in mind for when we get to the mission about overcoming adversity and stress.
Completing this mission will help you to begin where you are, and thrive.
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