Now, being present is quite hard to keep up. You slip back into not being present. And that’s OK. Don’t beat yourself up. Just accept that you are not present and you’ll feel better and more relaxed. Then it will be easier to slip back into the present moment again. Just like with anything, going for perfection often just leads to anxiety and beating yourself up. Going for consistency and improving your consistency gradually – slipping back into old habits less and less – is more useful.

Also, being present isn’t a magic pill that will solve all your problems or “fix you”. But like regular exercise, it can be helpful in several ways.

1. Improved social skills.

This may be one of the first things you discover when you start experimenting with being present. It was for me. If you have the problem that you get nervous/shy and “don’t know what to say” in a conversation then presence is one solution.