How to Apply The Power of Now to Your Life
The Power of Now is a classic self-help book. It sold millions of copies and frequently appears on lists of influential self-help books, even as it passes the 20th anniversary of its first edition.
We’re taking a look at the key messages of the book and how you can apply The Power of Now to your own life.
What is the Power of Now?
Written by Eckhart Tolle in 1997, The Power of Now explores presence, thinking, and spirituality. The book explains how thinking can introduce needless pain and suffering, and how to reduce this in your life by living in the present.
Eckhart Tolle is a well known spirituality writer. Originally born in Germany, he lived in Spain and England before settling in Canada shortly before writing The Power of Now.
The Power of Now is about 4 and a half hours of reading. In case you haven’t read the book, we have an easy summary below:
What are the Key Lessons from the Power of Now?
There are 10 chapters in The Power of Now and many, many lessons. We’ve briefly summarised a few of the key lessons below:
Disconnect From The Mind
You are not your mind. The untrained mind is a huge barrier to enlightenment and inner peace. Rather than understanding inner peace, its more important to feel inner peace.
Listen to the Mind
Once you’re free from the mind, you can observe and listen to the mind as a third party. This separation makes it easier to recognise how your mind influences your life.
Rise Above Chatter
The brain should be rested. Unceasing use of the brain often results in negative thoughts or unnecessary over-thought.
The Past Has No Power
Most pain is self created, accommodated in our mind and body. Reliving pain and hurt is unnecessary if living in the now.
Be Free From Ego
The ego is a demanding false self. Being free from the ego is essential to enjoying the present.
Let Thoughts Go
Watch your thoughts come and go, and reduce your need to react to those thoughts.
No Judgement
A key part of enlightened relationships is making room for love and peace by removing judgement from your partner and others around you.
How Can You Use the Power of Now?
The Power of Now has some powerful implications. For example:
- Remember to always live your life in the present.
- Don’t feel pressure to think constantly.
- Remember that your mind can create inner problems and turmoil, and these often impact the relationships around you.
- Deal with situations by removing yourself from a situation, changing it, or accepting it.
- Accepting your partner can lead to fewer problems and a better relationship.
- Forgive. Allow feelings of anger or resentment to pass.
A Simple Tool to Use the Power of Now in Your Life
iyarn is an easy tool that can be used to create a check in on the principles of The Power of Now. This tool is fantastic reminder to keep the key lessons of The Power of Now in your mind and having a positive influence on your life.
We’ve chosen seven key lessons from the book that we want to focus on. We’ve set up a wheel and completed a check in, providing an average score for each and all of the lessons.
In this example, we’ve scored low on Rise Above Chatter and Let Thoughts Go. We’ve focused on Let Thoughts Go below: seems like an easy place to start improving!
iyarn is easy to share results with a friend or invite others to complete a check in. It’s a great way to start a conversation. If we were really stuck on one of the lessons of a self-help book like The Power of Now, we could reach out to friends or mentors to see how they cope with similar challenges.
Try iyarn today. There is a free version on the link below that is perfect to get started.
