Unease, anxiety, tension, stress, worry—all forms of fear—are caused by too much future, and not enough presence. Guilt, regret, resentment, grievances, sadness, bitterness, and all forms of non-forgiveness are caused by too much past, and not enough presence.

-Eckhart Tolle

When you’re finding yourself anxious, stressed out, or sad, it’s time to get into the present moment. Being fully engaged in what is going on right now this moment will ease those feelings of anxiety, worry, guilt, and sadness. If you’re finding yourself dwelling on experiences of the past that bring up negative feelings, or consistently worrying about what’s going to happen, here are some tips to help you get through.

Start your day with some journaling. No judgements allowed, just full tilt stream of consciousness spilling it all out on the paper. Get out whatever you’re feeling or worried about, and just let it out so you can let it go! No need to ever show anyone or even to keep the journaling. Burn it if you want, just get it out so you can move on.

Breathe. Focus on your breath for five minutes. Just five minutes will help bring you to the present, and allow you to-

Savor the moment. Be fully engaged in what you are doing right now. Appreciate what is going on around you, and even within you. Engage with your senses: tase, touch, hear, smell, and see what is happening right now.

Smile! Enjoy the moment, be optimistic and expectant of positive experiences and feelings. 

Have too much to do? Plan, do the work, find your flow, and be in the moment. Be optimistic that in doing the work, the Universe will provide a positive outcome.

Busy day?  Set a timer throughout your day to remind you to take two minutes to be mindful of what’s going on right now.

Slow day? Reduce your activities that are filled with mindlessness and go do something. Seriously, playing games on your phone, binging Netflix all day, and incessantly scrolling social media are mindless activities that can get you comparing, judging, and stressed out. Instead, take action. Take a walk, clean out a drawer, DO something that brings you full enjoyment in the moment.

Practice acceptance. Understand that what you choose to do next comes from understanding where you are right now. It’s normal to have negative feelings. The key is to not judge them, cling to them, or even try to push them away. Accept that you feel this way. Your feelings are not you, they are only what you’re experiencing right now. They will pass. You will grow from them. Thoughts are not you, they are just thoughts. You don’t have to believe them, and you don’t have to do what they say. Thoughts, like feelings, also pass. 

Practice forgiveness. Forgive yourself like you’d forgive your most favorite person. Treat yourself with kindness and grace. Forgive others. Letting go of the past or stopping worrying about the future is not an easy task for a lot of people.

Sometimes it may seem like it takes quite a bit of effort to get into the present moment, but as you can see, that’s not actually true. Every single day, I used at least one of these tricks to help myself stay in the moment and recenter myself. I hope that you will find these tips useful for you, too!