The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur

September 12What Is Time?

These roses under my window make no reference to former roses or to better ones; they are for what they are; they exist with God today. There is no time to them. There is simply the rose; it is perfect in every moment of its existence. Before a leaf-bud has burst, its whole life acts; in the full-blown flower there is no more; in the leafless root there is no less. Its nature is satisfied, and it satisfies nature, in all moments alike.

Ralph Waldo Emerson—Self-Reliance (1841)

Almost every work cited in this book at some point turns to nature for an example or a metaphor related to living in the present.

So let's start today off talking about what it means to not live in the present, because that's where most of us spend a great deal of our life.

Not living in the present means you open yourself to becoming a victim of the ravages of time.

Here's a fun experiment for you. Google the question “Does time really exist?” and prepare yourself for some mind-altering reading.

Using your experiences from the past and dreaming about your life or your business in the future is okay. It's necessary, but it's only when our thoughts and feelings are dictated by our past or future that we need to find a way to get rooted firmly in the immediate present.

The reason nature makes such a fine example of mindfulness is that in nature, time is one giant emerging moment. There is no past, no future, really no time, so there's no way for nature to develop any bad habits ...