Being Present

Last night,as I was sitting in the air-conditioned community room, I flipped through September 2010 edition of Redbook magazine.

I came across the editor's notebook page on which the question What advice do you live by? was posed to many people. Tim Gunn happened to be one of responders. His advice began with "Give 100 percent of your attention to the person you're with."

So often I find myself multi-tasking in life, checking email while listening to music, eating while watching television, printing out a paper while making my bed etc.. At times I even find myself multi-tasking when someone is talking to me. Often it involves me listening to the person talk and I'm staring and working on my computer whether it's reading or writing email or a paper. I don't even sometimes look up at the person. That is not good.

This week during PD workshops, I saw so many people (myself included) looking through our phones and other keeping in touch tools instead of fully listening. A bad habit that I want to work on ending.

I think I'll take Tim Gunn's advice and start really paying attention to the person I'm with. I know I like it when people pay attention to me. So why shouldn't I do the same. After all as the Gospel message says "Treat others as you would like to me treated."