It is known that the most stressful situations in life occur when the mind is engaged in dreadful thoughts of past events or fearful projections of future events rather than being fully absorbed in the activity of the moment. You can see how precious and powerful this magic moment is to you.

This "being in the moment" has been called many things. Some call it concentration, others call it oneness, present-center or single-mindedness. Whatever you choose to call it, it is that totally absorbing, invigorating, positive, focused, harmonious moment that we all have experienced at some time in our lives.

This magic moment, so free of intruding thoughts, in which we suspend the perception of time is that moment of complete peace and harmony when we are aware of everything but distracted by nothing. We are so totally captured by the moment that there is no evaluation of the past or pre-judgement of the future. It is a time when you are the moment and the moment is you.

How powerful is this state? Research has shown it to be extremely powerful. A single thought mind state is very powerful. The fewer the number of thoughts flowing through the mind in a given amount of time, the greater the influence of each.

The mind constantly moves in the direction of it's current most dominant thought. We want our thoughts to move us closer to our objective. This is absolutely vital to improving our performance in any arena.

Reflect for a moment on the last time you were in the "zone", performing at your best. Can you recall what you were thinking, how you were feeling? I would venture to say, internally, you were very focused, alert and quiet (little to no internal chatter or imagery) and physically very relaxed and comfortable.

Sadly, most of us spend very little time aware of the present moment, We have lost or trained ourselves out of this very important ability, When you watch small children at play you see how totally absorbed they are in what they are doing. They are totally lost in the moment, unlike adults that have not even finished one task before thinking about the next. The pleasure of the moment is never even recognized, let alone appreciated.

This magical state of being in the moment can be developed. You can be totally focused in your relationships with people, events, objects or even with your inner thoughts and feelings, The application of this re-acquired ability is not for complex challenging situations or for learning new tasks or developing skills, It is for simplifying, -refining or perfecting skills that are already learned, allowing for observation without mental diversion or emotional response and yet being totally alert, relaxed and responsive.

Learning this skill will not only improve your performance on the golf course, tennis courts or ski slope, but will improve the quality of your life. It is not easy to re-train yourself, after all you have spent decades striving to get your brain and body to do simultaneous tasks. With commitment, discipline, effort and spaced repetition you will begin to see dramatic improvement in your concentration and focus.

EXERCISE 1. SENSORY OBSERVATION

Select an orange, peel and eat the sections one at a time. As you do this, observe it as if you have never seen an orange before, Devote full attention to every aspect of the experience. Notice the color, size, texture, smell, taste and even your thoughts about the orange. Experience all the sensations involved.

Now imagine how your body has changed by eating them. Feel your body becoming lighter, stronger and energized, yet calmer. Feel your mind becoming very alert, but very focused and enjoying the experience.

EXERCISE II. ACTIVE EXTERNAL FOCUS

Place a golf ball, tennis ball or a candle at a comfortable distance from you so that you can easily see all of it. Breathe slowly and deeply in through the nose and out through the mouth, center yourself and allow internal chatter to subside. Look directly at the object, Keep your eyes open and think only of the object. Observe the size, shape, color texture, etc, of the object. Keep your attention only on the object, only the object occupies your attention.

Try to do this for one minute, Each time a thought comes into your mind, gently direct your attention back to the object, This practice of going back to the object each time other thoughts intrude will strengthen your ability to focus. The mind, like the muscles, must be trained if performance is to be improved. When doing this exercise, take your time, do not hurry or rush. Do not be concerned if it doesn't happen right away, after a you are asking your mind to perform an activity that it probably has not done for sometime. With any mental exercise forcing the issue is counterproductive.

The process is more one of allowing or giving permission for things to happen vs. making it happen. Work your way up to 15 minutes where you do not have intruding thoughts. The average person with practice can achieve being present centered for about 12 to 15 minutes. Einstein could focus for periods of up to 45 minutes. With repetition and time your mind will become conditioned to be totally focused when and where you want.

EXERCISE III. RECEPTIVE INTERNAL FOCUS

Close your eyes and breathe deeply and slowly as in exercise two. Imagine yourself on a path, any path will do. See yourself moving along the path. Now you are coming to the end of the path.

It is interesting how the mind creates the next moment. This ability to be totally centered in the moment, with the receptive focus on the internal, is very similar to a day dream. This experience captivates you so that for a while it is your total reality. You are the dream and the dream is you. This provocative experience of receptive internal focus illustrates the power of a present centered mind.

It is important whether you were observing yourself moving along the path (dissociated) or you felt you were there on the path (associated into the experience). The quality of the experience is more powerful in the associated state.

In addition to improving your focus, concentration and being able to direct your mind at will, these exercises have been shown to increase relaxation, decrease blood pressure, pain, stomach acid production and decrease the amount of stress hormones released by the body. When calmness and stability are brought back into your experience, a lifestyle more consistent with good health is the result. Performance in all areas of your life will improve.