Have you ever heard of The Power of Now?
I am not a huge fan of self-help books. Those I have read over the years have left me feeling underwhelmed and without any lasting sense of change or improvement that I can recall. I no longer seek them out and never recommend them to my clients.
But one Sunday morning in January, I was lying in bed, listening to the radio. The DJ and her guest casually mentioned a book that they had both read and that had changed their lives. I was about to go away to a cottage without any internet or phone signal for seven days. And so I popped online and ordered the book, simply for something to do while I was away.
The book in question is The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. It arrived the next day, I packed it away and gave it no further thought until I arrived at my cottage the following weekend.
In the interests of full disclosure I will now admit the following:
- I have always suffered from a busy mind
- I am always struggling to shut said mind off and just relax
- I’m constantly preoccupied with what is coming up…days, months and years ahead
A guide to spiritual enlightenment…?
The Power of Now describes itself as a guide to spiritual enlightenment and Oprah Winfrey is quoted as believing that it can transform your thinking. All very intriguing to me and after a long and very busy-minded journey to North Yorkshire, I was ready for the mental clarity that the book promised.
I started reading it on the Monday (Sunday was given over to sleeping, eating and walking miles and miles!) and I will confess to finding it a bit tough to begin with. It is not light reading. The first few pages saw me re-reading the same passages over again until they made sense! But I persisted.
By the Tuesday, I had already tried a couple of the things that Eckhart suggests to test your ability to quiet your mind and to my complete and utter shock, they worked. I was able to experience complete mental quiet for the first time in as long as I could remember. It was brief, but I had done it.
Tuesday night I lay in bed working on clearing my mind over and over. It was tough but I managed it to a degree and I fell asleep feeling like enlightenment (to some degree at least) was possible for me.
My outlook was transformed
By the Thursday I had read two thirds of the book and my outlook was transformed. Suddenly my mind was quiet and I was starting to notice the beauty around me. The clouds, the colours in nature, the bird song.
My husband was amazed at the difference in me. I was joyful. That is the only way I can describe it!
So what is The Power of Now about?
Eckhart Tolle is an advocate of presence – awareness of our inner self. He believes that as a society we are driven by an obsession with the past and the future, and that the route to true peace is to focus only on the present moment. Because, as he will tell you, it is the only moment that you have complete control of.
You cannot change the past, and you cannot predict or change the future. But by focussing every drop of your attention and awareness on the present moment, you increase the power of that moment. Hence, The Power of Now.
For me, this has led to a complete focus on what I am doing now and, for example, not allowing my thoughts to wander into the future and try to predict whether anyone will read this blog post. All I am focussed on is doing the very best job of writing it that I can.
A lasting impact?
Since I returned home from my holiday, life has kicked back in as it always does. The pressures of work, a teenage son and various other common aspects of existence have made being present a far greater challenge than it was when I was safely tucked away in the middle of nowhere.
But I’m still feeling the Power of Now. I am still less inclined to worry than I was before and far more pragmatic about things that go wrong. I am more productive and more creative and I am completely in love with nature and birds. To my surprise, even the beauty of the recent snow moved me to tears.
Since reading The Power of Now, I feel that my eyes have been opened to what is around me. I feel the joy of existence and a sense of connection to every living thing.
It is a wonderful and life changing book.
I am now on my third copy, having given two away to people I felt would benefit from it.
If you are feeling that life is passing you by, that your mind is controlling you and you are consumed with worry about the future or dogged by memories of the past, I would strongly recommend that you give this book a try.
As for me…..anyone who works with me as their coach will feel the benefit of this book because it has not only changed how I view my own life, it has changed the way in which I interact with my clients.
There truly is so much power and beauty in “The Now”.
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