If you’ve found your way here, you’re probably not lost — just tired of living in your head.
Most people don’t arrive at The Present Body because everything is going well.
They arrive because:
They keep procrastinating, even when they care
Their mind won’t stop replaying the past or worrying about the future
They feel stuck, distracted, or disconnected from their own lives
They know something needs to change, but forcing it hasn’t worked.
If any of that sounds familiar, you’re in the right place.
This post will help you slow down, understand what this space is about, and choose a simple place to begin.
Most advice about procrastination assumes something is wrong with you.
That you lack discipline.
That you need better habits.
That you should push harder, plan better, or motivate yourself more.
But what if procrastination isn’t a motivational problem at all?
What if it’s a presence problem?
Why procrastination feels so heavy
Notice what happens when you think about the thing you’re avoiding.
Your mind doesn’t stay with the task itself.
It jumps ahead.
It imagines:
- How long it will take
- How uncomfortable it might feel
- Whether you’ll do it well enough
- What it might lead to
In other words, procrastination doesn’t live in the present moment.
It lives in an imagined future.
And the future, as your nervous system understands it, is therefore a threat.
Your body responds with tension.
Your breath shortens.
Your focus scatters.
Anxiety skyrockets.
So you avoid — not because you’re lazy, but because your system is trying to protect you.
The mistake most people make
When procrastination shows up, we usually respond with pressure.
“Come on.”
“Just do it.”
“Why am I like this?”
“There’s something wrong with me”
This adds another layer of tension on top of the first.
You’re now:
- Avoiding the task
- Judging yourself for avoiding it
More thinking.
More resistance.
Less presence.
Nothing actually moves.
The body never procrastinates
Here’s something simple but important:
Your body does not procrastinate.
Your hands are always ready to move.
Your breath is always happening.
Your feet are always making contact with the ground.
Only the mind delays — because it’s trying to solve every single possible problem in a future that doesn’t exist yet.
This is why trying to “think your way” out of procrastination so often fails.
The solution isn’t more thought.
It’s coming back into experience.
A different way to begin
Instead of asking, “How do I get myself to do this?”
Try asking something quieter:
“Where is my attention right now?”
Chances are, it’s nowhere near the present moment; it’s wondering what’s going to happen after you’ve taken action or whether you’re even good enough to take action in the first place.
So before you touch the task, touch now.
Here’s how.
A simple practice (try this before doing anything)
You don’t need to sit down or clear your mind.
Just pause for 30–60 seconds.
- Put both feet on the floor
- Feel the weight of your body where you’re sitting or standing
- Take one slow breath and notice it fully
- Let your shoulders drop — even slightly
That’s it.
You haven’t done the task yet.
You haven’t planned anything.
You’ve simply returned to the body.
This is not a trick.
It’s a reset.
Action only happens now
Once you’re here — even briefly — something changes.
The task stops being a massive future event.
It becomes a single, present-moment action.
Not:
“Finish the whole thing.”
But:
“Open the document.”
“Stand up.”
“Move one object.”
The body understands this.
Presence turns action into something immediate and possible, even baby steps eventually get the job done.
Why this works
When attention is in the present:
- The nervous system settles
- Threat perception decreases
- Mental noise quiets
- Movement becomes natural
You’re no longer fighting yourself.
You’re cooperating with how the system actually works.
This isn’t about forcing productivity
This approach isn’t about becoming hyper-efficient or disciplined.
It’s about removing the friction that was never necessary in the first place.
Sometimes, after coming back to the body, you’ll realise:
- You don’t need to do the thing right now
- You need rest
- You need clarity
- You need to move
Presence gives you honest information — not just pressure.
Mentally pressuring ourselves to do something or even judging ourselves for these blockages and negative feelings only keeps that same vicious cycle turning;
returning to this present moment where you are safe, you’re breathing and you realise all we ever have is our eternal present moment, this is when we want to take action, however small, as we know we’re working towards our goals.
A little effort in the now goes a long way over time.
A final reflection
Procrastination isn’t a sign that something is wrong with you.
It’s a sign that your attention has drifted away from where life is actually happening.
You don’t overcome procrastination by fixing the future.
You overcome it by returning to now — again and again.
It can be difficult to return to the present moment when we’ve had years of allowing our minds to overrun with worry and anxiety; so be gentle with yourself.
The more you catch yourself thinking about the past or future, the better you’re becoming at returning to the now. The realisation alone that we’re doing this allows us to gently guide our thoughts back to the present moment, and remind ourselves all we ever have is right now; we’re not in the past, we’re not in the future, we’re right here, right now – this is where the actions we take count.
The present moment isn’t a place you stay forever.
It’s a place you return to.
That’s enough to begin.
If this resonated, don’t rush on. Understand WHY we’ve allowed our minds to overrun with past judgements and future fears with this next post on understanding the ego.
