Do you ever feel like the puppy in the photo above? He’s so distracted that he can’t see the squirrel on the other side of the tree. I felt like that as I drove to an International Coach Federation conference in the Texas hill country. Luckily, one of the first exercises was to set our intention for the weekend. Since I was bringing a lot of distractions with me I decided on something I could remember:
Positive — Open — Present
At the first check-in most people admitted some challenges with maintaining their intention, even though we had several opportunities to practice techniques for increasing awareness and staying mindful. Not surprisingly, this was more difficult as the day wore on. At our final check-in the next morning, I realized that practice had made it a little easier to stay Positive and Open …which enabled me to stay Present.
I brought home some visual reminders of the positive things I want to focus on so I wouldn’t go right back to:
Negative – Closed — Distracted
If you’re like a distracted puppy, what will help you stay focused and present? How will you put that into practice in the next week and beyond?