I’ve been pondering this question for a while, and I’d love your insight!
On one hand, we are taught to ‘know our outcome’ and move forward in faith to create the future we envision for ourselves.
On the other hand, though, we are taught in other places to live in the present moment, ‘take no thought for tomorrow’ and to remove any emotional attachment to a specific outcome (and thus disappointment).
I’d love to hear your thoughts… whether short or long, profound or simple, experience or theory. Perhaps in the sharing of ideas we can all help each other grow.
What do you think?
I’ve always looked at it from the perspective of the industrial revolution. If, as many suggest, people like Henry Ford, Andrew Carnegie, etc. kept their thoughts grounded only in the present moment, and were successful at promoting this concept to the masses, we might still be riding horses today, focused on how lucky we are to have such a fine creature to ride to town.
Personally, I like to be able to hop in my car.
Or, had Jonas Salk have stayed “present”, instead of dreaming of the future, and establishing a goal like the one he did, we would still have to fear our children being stricken with polio.
I think being able to shift rapidly into the present moment at will, as a skill, is very useful and intelligent at times. Conversely, I think being able to “go elsewhere” is just as valuable- just in another context, for a different purpose.
Great question Joseph!
Vincent Harris
Hi Joseph,
Is the goal not to experience disapointment?
The only reason why you would be disapointed is that you have told yourself “I can’t have what I want”. You have looked at the external circumstance and decided that you can’t have what you want. Disapointment comes from the illusion that we are separate from the source of our good.
If the goal/desire was to have a cookie, I don’t think it would matter where the cookie came from. But that is a perfect illustration of how we think what we want is the process (getting a cookie/having a cookie) when what we really want is what (we think) the cookie will bring us (hapiness). So we can just as easily skip the process and BE the result (hapiness). You can have/BE it now. And the funny thing about BEING the result now, is that it then becomes easy & natural to have the cookie (or anything else that matches that vibration of happiness).
Aloha,
Eleanore
GREAT question! The way I would reconcile these two ideas is very simple. Once I set my intention for the day (in meditation, seeing my beautifully prosperous and abundant future very clearly) I start on my “list” and I do my very best to be 100% present in that activity….then I move to the next. In other words, I BRING my dream to the day (by… Read More my body’s vibration) and feel grateful for all the good that finding its way to my life. That makes it so easy to be aware and joyful and grateful for each moment, each challenge, each breakthrough.
Wonderful pondering…..I believe you are demonstrating the old paradigm that is falling away–this or that. right or wrong. black or white. The new energy that is coming in will, I believe release the need for duality, and bring in more integration–integrating present moment with mind intention, masculine, feminine. Allowing our minds to be in the both/and space is very empowering and freeing.
thank you for tag, Joseph
keep up the great thinking.
ps sounds similar about wanting your cake and eating it too.
Michelle
The Soul Coach
http://www.brightlightcoach.com
Hey Joseph,
As you know I am fairly conservative… and the example I am going to use right now is the traditional definition of marriage (of which I believe)and how there can be a constant battle between what we tell ourselves we believe and what is truly at our core.
I just got back to the office from doing a quote and “Heterosexual Man” was on the radio and my first reaction was… “MY THEME SONG!” Then I really listened to the lyrics and it got me thinking after watching your video last night…
I wanna have every woman I know
I wanna have them take off their clothes
I’ll make it with them unless they say no
’cause I”m a heterosexual man
I’ll make it with them whenever I can
So I realized that this is definitely NOT my theme song. So was it a deep rooted fear of homosexual relationships that caused my first reaction to declare this as my theme song with little thought to what it was really saying? Am I not as loving as I profess to be? How would I react if put in a situation where I had to face those feelings head on? And then the following situation popped into my head.
A “conservative” Dad has a wonderful son that he plays hockey with, takes fishing, wrestles with, etc. The son grows and so does their relationship. The son moves away for school and after several years living away from home returns to inform his dad he is gay. He has quit the hockey team because of the tormenting and doesn’t plan to continue to play. He is still a virgin however and doesn’t plan to have sex anytime soon but he is attracted to other men and has started to see someone.
OR
A “conservative” Dad has a wonderful son that he plays hockey with, takes fishing, wrestles with, etc. The son grows and so does their relationship. The son moves away for school and after several years living away from home returns to inform his dad he is no longer a virgin, has become very sexually active and rarely uses protection… He is now the star of the hockey team, he has been with all the “hot” girls and has become very popular.
I asked myself… what would I do! What situation would I prefer if I had to choose…
All I know is that I live trying to love my children with all my heart more and more each day! My attachment to a son having a wife and family OR a son who lives a long healthy life, one free of sickness and disease would cause me pain yes… but my love for my child, I HOPE, would allow me to be with them in the moment and see a beautiful person regardless of MY own personal beliefs and perceptions…
I believe if we could only learn to love each other as parents love their children and children love their parents there would be enough forgiveness and long suffering to change the world by changing ourselves!
Thanks for the video Joseph… It’s always good to face the beliefs that hold you back and reach towards something better.
Sean
Hi Joseph,
This is such a wonderful thought provoking question. I do a guided meditation called Manifesting Your Hearts Desires. Of course being an energy worker i perceive life in terms of energy alignments. So there seems nothing contradictory to me to be fully present while envisioning the future and creating an awareness of what energetically shifts to allow the present being to move into that space as well as what the the present moment barriers or opposing beliefs exist to bring this into being. It’s quite an exhilarating experiental meditation and many people have life changing experiences as a result of this.
Thanks for asking. It was a delight to share.
Creating my future, first I have to have goals, and to reaching my goals, I have to make a list of plan, that dividing into 2 (short term plan and long term plan).
Everything that I do in the present will affect with my future.
Well, here’s what I think about creating future..
•Small steps
Think about what you feel exited before start
•Committed with your goals
Goals can’t be change in every hours or every morning
•Make some priorities
Which one is important to do first
•Be positive, and
Be confident, attractive, and optimist is important (but not over )
•Follow you heart or intuitions
It’s quick and ready insight. You don’t have to think twice
•Knowing your limits
Don’t push too hard and ignoring help from others
This is interesting thing to share. Any questions for me? I’ll be glad to answer it.
I've always looked at it from the perspective of the industrial revolution. If, as many suggest, people like Henry Ford, Andrew Carnegie, etc. kept their thoughts grounded only in the present moment, and were successful at promoting this concept to the masses, we might still be riding horses today, focused on how lucky we are to have such a fine creature to ride to town.
Personally, I like to be able to hop in my car.
Or, had Jonas Salk have stayed “present”, instead of dreaming of the future, and establishing a goal like the one he did, we would still have to fear our children being stricken with polio.
I think being able to shift rapidly into the present moment at will, as a skill, is very useful and intelligent at times. Conversely, I think being able to “go elsewhere” is just as valuable- just in another context, for a different purpose.
Great question Joseph!
Vincent Harris