One Day At A Time

Have you ever had a conversation with a recovering addict? If so, you will have almost certainly heard the words "I'm just taking it one day at a time" come from their lips. It's more than a creed for members of AA, it's survival.

What is the power in one day at a time?

Well, one day is all there is. All I have is today, and the only affect I can have on my future is by what I decide to do today.

Here is another reason. When trying to reach a goal, when we look at our past we can feel shame and regret. When we look at our future we can feel fear. These emotions can be paralyzing. So we actually end up doing nothing.  Yet when we focus on today all we see are the simple steps right in front of us.

Let me give you an example.

Say I want to stop drinking soda. That's a nice, worthy goal you will find in approximately every dietary article ever written. If I focus on the past, all I will think of is the gallons of soda I have ingested.  It's easy to ask myself "How am I ever going to stop drinking soda if I've had it ever day for the past 3 years and half of my blood stream is currently Mt. Dew?"

I need to forget about the past. Constantly remembering how much soda I've had in my life doesn't serve me.

Ok, but what if I think too much about the future? Now suddenly I am imagining a hot summer day on a boat with a cooler full of cold soda. My thought pattern goes something like this "How am I ever going to resist that? It's overwhelming, I will never make it...I think I'll have one right now."  I just went from "Never Again" to "I'll take 44 ounces please" in 3 sentences.

What if I focus on today? I wake up and think about lunch. What should I eat for lunch that will keep me from visiting that Mexican restaurant with the great Coke machine? Today is manageable, today is doable. Today isn't scary.

Plus, today is the only day I can live.

Any change, no matter how big or small, must be broken down into daily increments. There is perhaps nothing more important than this principle when it comes to personal development. Live your change TODAY. Not tomorrow or a month from now, live it today.

Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow will take care of itself. Together, let's not beat ourselves up for the past or fear the future. Let's live our change today.