“Your Daily Dose” is a quick two minute read packed with bite-sized wisdom from all the great teachers. But you could also choose to turn it into something more… a powerful daily practice for personal growth. Give it a try!
A message from today’s meditation:
The week stretches before you, a canvas waiting for your brushstrokes. Goals to set, dreams to chase – it’s the natural human instinct to plan, to propel ourselves towards a perceived better future. But in this mad dash towards “what could be”, we often forget the most fertile ground for true growth: the present moment.
Our teacher for this week is John Welwood, a pioneering psychologist who bridged Eastern spirituality and Western psychology – and as we look ahead at a new week his message is that of course we have to plan for the future, but we can’t live there!
Keep returning to the present. Find acceptance for the being that you are right now, it’s so easy to slip into the narrative that says, “I’ll be acceptable once I’ve finally fixed all my flaws.”
“Forget about enlightenment. Sit down wherever you are and listen to the wind singing in your veins. Feel the love, the longing, and the fear in your bones. Open your heart to who you are, right now, not who you would like to be. Not the saint you’re striving to become. But the being right here before you, inside you, around you. All of you is holy. You’re already more and less than whatever you can know. Breathe out, touch in, let go.” – John Welwood
“We already have so much abundance. We truly do. We need not search too far. It is within. The reason we fail to recognize this is because we haven’t quite mastered the art of being.” – John Welwood
“In recognizing exactly where we have been unconscious, we become more conscious.” – John Welwood
This isn’t a dismissal of goals or aspirations. Planning provides direction, a roadmap for our journey. But it shouldn’t become our sole focus, consuming every waking moment with worry about tomorrow. We often get caught in the “when-I-get-there” narrative: “I’ll be happy when I finally achieve X, Y, or Z.” This mindset transforms life into an endless waiting room, where true living is perpetually postponed.
Welwood reminds us that the abundance we crave isn’t reserved for some future enlightened state; it’s available right now, within the messy beauty of our present reality. The reason we fail to recognize this is because we “haven’t quite mastered the art of being,” he observes.
The present moment holds the key. We start this week with a reminder to not get lost in the goals of the future but to move from moment to moment asking:
“what does this present moment ask me to pay attention to?”
Is it a simmering pot on the stove, a call to a client, or simply the feeling of your breath against your nostrils? By grounding ourselves in the now, we can respond authentically and effectively.
Pouring 100% our energy into what the present moment requires of us, is what sets us up for the next moment and the next.
This week, let’s commit to:
- Notice the breath: Take a few mindful breaths throughout the day.
- Feel your body: Acknowledge physical sensations, both pleasant and unpleasant, without judgment.
- Embrace your emotions: Don’t shy away from difficult emotions. Observe them, name them, and let them pass.
- Be present with others: Put down your phone during conversations. Listen actively and engage fully.
Remember, “enlightenment” isn’t some distant peak you have to conquer. It’s the journey itself, savoring each step with an open heart and a present mind.
Hope you have an awesome week!
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: Jumpstart the week!
Today’s LIVE meditation
https://youtu.be/U4oZyhevOZw 2026
https://youtu.be/NsTmYIM7X5k 2025
https://youtu.be/I2DboGAb-Pc 2024
https://youtu.be/tCxD_ntcV90 2023
Practice the “Daily Dose”
Let’s put it into practice! Choose what works for you – daily, once a week or whenever inspiration strikes. Putting pen to paper wires the neural pathways that will create your new habits.
1 – Affirmation
Not quite affirmations today, but a few principles I enjoy. Write down your favourite on a sticky note and place it somewhere that you’ll be able to see it the whole day.
- Notice the breath: Take a few mindful breaths throughout the day.
- Feel your body: Acknowledge physical sensations, both pleasant and unpleasant, without judgment.
- Embrace your emotions: Don’t shy away from difficult emotions. Observe them, name them to tame them, and let them pass.
- Be present with others: Put down your phone during conversations. Listen actively and engage fully.
2 – A moment of reflection
Use today’s question as a journal prompt. If you don’t have the time to sit down and write, just take a moment to reflect on your response.
Exploring Your “When-Then” Stories: What are the “when-I-get-there” narratives you’ve been telling yourself? (“I’ll be happy when…”, “I’ll be enough when…”). Write about how these stories have shaped your relationship with the present moment. What would change if you gave yourself permission to be happy, whole, or enough right now?
3 – Quotes to share
Send a quote to someone who needs it, or share them all on social media to spread the good vibes!
4 – Q&A for deeper learning
Read through the questions and answers and write down at least one “aha moment” that clicked for you.
Q1: Doesn’t focusing on the present moment mean I’m giving up on my goals and ambitions?
Not at all. The message isn’t about abandoning planning or goal-setting – it’s about not living entirely in the future at the expense of the present. Planning provides necessary direction, but when we fixate exclusively on future outcomes, we miss the only moment where actual living and growing happens: right now. Being present actually makes you more effective at achieving your goals because you’re fully engaged with each step rather than mentally racing ahead.
Q2: What does Welwood mean by “forget about enlightenment”?
Welwood is challenging the notion that enlightenment is some perfect, distant state we must strive to reach before we can accept ourselves. This mindset creates a perpetual sense of inadequacy – “I’m not enlightened enough yet.” Instead, he’s inviting us to recognize that wholeness and “holiness” are already present in who we are right now, flaws and all. Enlightenment isn’t a destination; it’s the practice of being fully present with our current reality.
Q3: How do I “master the art of being” when I’m so used to constantly doing?
Start small and practice self-compassion. The art of being is cultivated through simple practices: taking mindful breaths throughout the day, noticing physical sensations without judgment, feeling your emotions rather than suppressing them, and being fully present during conversations. It’s not about perfection; it’s about repeatedly returning to presence whenever you notice you’ve drifted into autopilot or future-focused anxiety.
Q4: What if my present moment is painful or difficult? Should I still focus on it?
Yes, but with compassion. Welwood specifically mentions feeling “the love, the longing, and the fear in your bones.” Presence doesn’t mean only acknowledging pleasant experiences. It means allowing difficult emotions to exist without immediately trying to fix, suppress, or escape them. By observing and naming difficult emotions without judgment, we actually create space for them to pass naturally rather than becoming stuck or intensified through resistance.
Q5: How can I tell if I’m living too much in the future?
Notice if you frequently catch yourself thinking “I’ll be happy when…” or “Life will be better once…” Pay attention to whether you’re mentally absent during daily activities, rushing through moments to get to the “next thing,” or feeling like you’re constantly waiting for your real life to begin. These are signs you’re overly future-focused. Another indicator is anxiety – excessive worry about the future often signals that you’ve abandoned the present moment.
Q6: What does it mean to ask “What does this present moment ask me to pay attention to?”
This question invites you to check in with your immediate reality and needs. It might be a practical matter (the pot on the stove needs stirring), a relational need (your child is trying to tell you something), a physical sensation (you’re hungry or tired), or an emotional truth (you’re feeling anxious and need to pause). In a work context, it could be recognizing that the report on your desk needs your focused attention right now, observing that you’re rushing through an email and should slow down to communicate more clearly, or realizing that the project you’ve been procrastinating on is asking for two hours of your undivided effort today. We create the future we want by attending to what the present moment asks us to take care of.
Q7: How does recognizing where we’ve been unconscious make us more conscious?
Awareness is the first step toward transformation. When we notice patterns where we’ve been operating unconsciously – perhaps reacting defensively in conversations, scrolling through our phone during meals, or rushing through morning routines without presence – we create the possibility of choice. You can’t change what you can’t see. By shining light on our unconscious habits and patterns, we reclaim the power to respond differently, making conscious choices that align with who we want to be rather than simply repeating old programming.