One Apple A Day #261
Through my journey to become a coach I’m learning the importance of presence.
Being fully present in what we do, bringing ourselves wholly into the moment is incredibly powerful.
Our brain consumes 25 percent of the body’s energy when the body is at rest. I bet it is even more when we are doing a cognitive task. If we are not entirely present in what we are doing, a part of that energy goes wasted.
I often find myself thinking about the next thing to ask while I’m listening to someone. Or I keep thinking about something happened earlier in the day while I’m writing. In all these cases my mind is not using all its potential for the task, I’m doing at the moment. The result is that my action is not as effective as it could be.
When I watch competitions like motor racing or the Olympics, I’m always amazed by the ability of the athletes to cut out everything and be fully present in what they are doing. All their essence and all their energy flow into their gestures. Not a single drop of energy goes lost in thoughts that are not involved in the movement they are doing. A fraction of a second or a millimetre can make the difference between winning and losing.