Envision The Vision: A Present Beyond The Present
We’ve all heard the phrase: “Live today like it’s your last.”
But what if that advice, though well-meaning, is leading us slightly astray?
In this episode of Words With Myself, we step into the quiet tension between presence and planning — between being and becoming. It’s not just a conversation — it’s a call to awaken.
Misunderstanding the Moment
Too often, “live like it’s your last day” is taken literally. It can easily morph into a kind of reckless freedom: blow off responsibilities, skip the small stuff, indulge.
But presence isn’t about abandoning the future. It’s not about throwing away your toothbrush and maxing out your joy credit card.
“Being present is not the absence of future — it’s the awareness of now.”
True presence is something deeper, quieter, and more powerful. It’s being all in with what you’re doing — whether that’s chopping onions, walking down the street, or writing out your vision for what’s next.
The Power of Attention
Imagine a samurai tending a bonsai tree — calm, focused, precise. That’s presence.
Or think of a fighter in the middle of a cage match. Adrenaline pumping, senses razor-sharp. There’s no room for wandering thoughts when survival is on the line.
But here’s the catch — even then, the mind can slip.
“You could be in a life-or-death moment and still find your mind drifting — wondering, doubting, fearing.”
So what chance do we have on an ordinary Tuesday morning, sipping coffee on the train?
You Only Exist Where You Are
If your mind is constantly rehashing the past or forecasting the future… you’re not really here.
The past is memory. The future is imagination. Only now is real. And if you’re not living in now, you’re not really living.
But presence doesn’t mean ignoring the future — it means engaging with it intentionally, from right here.
You don’t have to quit your job today to start a new life.
You can begin by planning, journaling, imagining, preparing.
All of that is presence — if you’re intentional.
Envision The Vision
So what does your future self look like?
Strong? Grounded? Brave? Free?
What would they do today?
“You have to do the work today that the person of tomorrow would do.”
That’s the key.
You shape your future by being fully here, acting in alignment with your vision, right now.
You don’t need to wait. You just need to see clearly, and act deliberately.
From Rinse & Repeat to Real Growth
If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.
But with vision and intention, you break that cycle.
You choose growth. You choose change. You live deliberately, not habitually.
And with every choice, every task, every breath — you are here.
Now.