“Don’t let yesterday use up too much of your today.”
I got through yesterday. In many regards, I survived it. I did it by focusing on those tasks, activities, and outcomes that I need to zero in on that will get me to my goal. That said, whether it is yesterday, today, or tomorrow, a piece of me is wandering off thinking about the situation with Brandon. Could I have done something different? Did I live or violate my commitment to him and his recovery? Is there something I need to be doing right now to help or reach out to him? While it is easy to say, focusing on now is not always a simple accomplishment.
One of the great attributes accorded to most successful professional golfers is their ability to focus on the hole they are currently playing. Regardless of what happened on the previous hole, the successful golfers put the events on that hole behind them and start focusing on the next one. Their ability to zero in on the moment defines their ability to be successful. Obviously they cannot totally block everything out, but they have developed the presence and the discipline to maintain focus on the next task at hand.
Bad days and disruptive events are bound to occur in our lives. We need to learn how to focus on the task at hand. Like the professional golfers, we need to put the previous experiences behind us and focus on what is ahead of us. Our ability to accomplish this is directly dependent upon how clear we are about our mission and our vision as it relates to where we are going. Part of the reason golfers can focus on the task at hand is that they are looking at a new hole and creating a vision for their success and accomplishment as it relates to this new challenge. All the skills, gifts, and talents that they have are redeployed on the current mission – the next hole.
A new day is the same to us. Today is a new day, with new challenges and new opportunities for you to focus your skills, talents, energies, and abilities on a new and exciting day. Yesterday is behind you. Put it behind you and start focusing on the promise of today. Whatever happened yesterday does not need to carry over unless you let it. If you need to put it behind you, focus on the opportunities in the present and you will be enriched and excited for today.
One of the uplifting comments I received on Facebook yesterday when sharing about my “Lonelier Ride” was “a lonelier ride, yes, but a ride just the same. If one fails, the other must be stronger.” Regardless of what happened yesterday, today is a new challenge and a new opportunity to live and celebrate your commitments to your goals. Stay focused and keep moving and focus on what is ahead of you not what happened behind you.
