Don't Give Your Future Self A Problem

Give it a gift instead.

Why not give your future self gifts instead of problems?

Future self —as in tomorrow, later today, next year, or ten years from now.

We all gift our future selves sometimes.

We make enough in one meal to have later, save some money to spend later, or mow the grass during the week so that we can go away on the weekend.

But we often give our future self a problem instead of a gift.

• We spend more money than we have.

• We don’t clean up our mess.

• We cover up problems.

• We don’t take good care of ourselves.

• We don’t learn new skills to keep up with the world.

• We don’t read the instructions on something we are putting together.

• We don’t listen when someone is telling us something.

Oh yes, this list could go on and on.

Instead of making resolutions about what we are going to do—which, for the most part, gives our future self a chance to feel guilty because we don’t do it—why not switch it up and think instead, “How can I give my future self a gift?”

Since our habit is not to gift our future self, I developed a few ways to break that habit.

Here are a few things to try.

Have you ever given your future self a problem by putting things off until there is enough pressure to get them done? Instead…

Give yourself a “curtain going up” event.

In preparing for theatre and dance events, we always knew exactly when we were expected to be ready. The curtain would go up, and the audience would be waiting.

There were no excuses or reasons for not being ready. We said we would be prepared, and we were.

I loved the thrill of that moment of sharing what we did with the audience who wanted to see it.

The key here is we promised someone we would be ready.

If I don’t have a “curtain going up” moment, I can come up with many reasons why I can’t, won’t, or don’t do what I want to do.

• Keeping a promise to myself is easier to break than keeping a promise to others.

But how is a current going up moment a gift and not a problem for my future self?

First, it is a conscious choice rather than an unconscious pressure that builds until I have to do it. I start preparing early, enjoy the preparation more, and love the experience of doing a “good show” and keeping my promise.

This one is simple …

Have a place.

For everything.

This is self-explanatory. Instead of wasting time looking for something, your future self will know precisely where something is.

Imagine how that would feel.

When all else fails…

I ask myself, “What if I died today?

Will I be happy with what I have left undone?“

This can be applied to anything from cleaning the house to writing the next blog or book.

It’s not a harsh question. We will all leave something behind. What will that be?

Every moment provides an opportunity to provide for our future selves. We only have to decide that gifting our future self is a priority.

And as we do so, we find we are also gifting our current selves.

We live more in the moment, not the past, and we find ourselves less stressed and more excited about life.

See life using spiritual perception.

Here’s the cool thing.

The concept of gifting our future self is the Principle of big R Reality.

God—I know I am temporarily making God “human-like "—lives as the moment of “curtain going up” and “having a place.”

The Infinite has to have every star in its proper place, bird feathers attached, insect feelers operational, flower buds prepared, tree roots anchored, and every hair on our head numbered.

As we gift our future self with small and large acts of kindness, we are constantly reminded that we are the recipients of Love gifting Itself in all its unique forms and ways—not because it has to, but because that is how it works.

Knowing this and living from it is the best gift we can give our future selves, and as an outcome of this gift to ourselves, we gift everyone our lives touch.

Gift your future self by fully living in your present self.

Your future self will thank you for the gifts you give it, and your present self will be grateful, too.

Have fun “shopping” for great gifts to give your future self. The good news is that they don’t cost money—just attention and care.

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The Four Essential Questions is a guidebook for breaking bad habits and creating good ones, like gifting your future self.