The Future Grows from the Present

Common phrases like "live for the moment" or "carpe diem" are often used in everyday conversations. However, in this blog post, we will explore how not living for the moment, but truly living in the moment allows us to illuminate the future by becoming more aware of today. As we immerse ourselves in the present, we often find that worries about the future accompany us. These worries bring challenges into the present, leading us to seek a false sense of certainty—a mental habit of preparing for the worst, as if assuming the worst will somehow bring control over an uncertain future. Yet, we will uncover that this strategy plays no real role in shaping the future at all.

The human mind has a negativity bias. Humans are not wired to seek happiness; rather, they are wired to seek safety. Given the choice, a person would rather skip lunch than become lunch. Thinking about the future can be unsettling. Of course, thoughts of the future can include hope and dreams, but for most people who strive to illuminate tomorrow, the dominant emotions are often anxiety, urgency, and fear.

We live on autopilot mode and mostly outcome-driven. When we are on the first step, we are already thinking about the tenth, unable to stay grounded in the present. This constant forward projection causes us to stumble along the way. The greater the gap between who we are and who we want to be, the harder it becomes to enjoy where we are—and sometimes, we fail to be present at all. Being future-oriented often comes at the cost of losing the present moment. We all know that in life, conceptual thinking and direct experience can feel very different. Take, for example, living in a place like Istanbul. If you’re in a hurry and see heavy traffic in the opposite direction, you might think:"If I were stuck in that, I wouldn’t be able to handle it—it would feel like the end of the world." But this is just a thought—a mental construct. And yet, anyone who lives in Istanbul has inevitably found themselves in that very traffic. And once you’re in it, you get through it. I always say this: experiencing a challenge is easier than thinking it. You can apply this to anything—difficulties, loss, uncertainty. When you are in it, you find a way through—because life keeps flowing forward.

Well-being encompasses contentment with the past, hope for the future, and pleasure or fulfillment in the present. And everything we experience is ultimately perceived in the now. If we want to look back on the past with satisfaction, we must collect meaningful moments today. If we want to feel at ease with the uncertainty of the future, we must learn to embrace it with comfort and hope in the present.

We all desire a future filled with peace, balance, and fulfillment, don’t we? Now, I invite you to recall a moment when you truly felt that way. What was present in that moment?Most likely, something sensory—a sight, a sound, a scent, a touch.Because we only experience true fulfillment and satisfaction when we are fully immersed in the present.

In my courses, I have asked thousands of people to identify the activities that nourish them versus those that drain them. The most common nourishing activities include: Drinking coffee or tea, Going for a walk, Having meaningful conversations with loved ones. These are not performance-driven activities; they are things we freely choose, activities we enjoy for the process itself, rather than for the outcome. On the other hand, draining activities often include: Mandatory phone calls, Work-related tasks, Sitting in traffic etc. These are stressful, outcome-driven activities—things we do solely to reach a result. But what if we could approach more aspects of life from a place of joy rather than obligation?

When we fully settle into the present moment, we naturally create a meaningful memory for the past while also preparing the ground for a fulfilling future. By truly living this moment, we ensure that when it becomes the past, it will be remembered with joy and gratitude.

There is a common perception about time: when we think about the future, it feels as though time stretches, as if we are expanding it. The thought of the present moment being the very last can be unsettling for anyone. People want to live well, but they also want to live long—except in moments of suffering. That’s why believing in a long future ahead is often comforting. However, true enrichment of time comes not from merely extending it but from making it more meaningful and qualitative. In reality, we often go through life without truly living. If we do not feel a moment, we have not truly lived it. When we are lost in fantasies, scrolling through social media, or ruminating on the past, we are actually wasting time—both quantitatively and qualitatively. When we feel restless, we often say, "I don't fit anywhere. I can’t settle down." It describes that persistent unease, that constant sense of agitation. But these moments, in a way, are unlived moments—because when we are preoccupied with anxiety and future worries, we miss the present. Yet, when we fully settle into this moment, when we engage our five senses and feel our body, we honor the present, expand it, and truly immerse ourselves in it. The idea that "I’ll endure now so I can be comfortable later" is simply not true. Happiness and peace cannot be postponed.

What truly shapes the future is being process-oriented. We often think: "I should work harder, accumulate more, or start investing now—whether in relationships, work, a project, the world, or even my bank account—to secure my future."

But what if things don’t go as planned? That’s okay too. Whatever we do today, we do it in alignment with our values, and in truth, those actions are for today as well. When we act in accordance with our values, we receive the reward moment by moment.

Living mindfully and fully in the present is like preparing fertile soil in the garden of our lives—allowing flowers to bloom in the future. I hope the light of today illuminates your tomorrows. I would like to conclude this blog post with one of my favorite poems by Fernando Pessoa...

Beyond the Bend in the Road

Beyond the bend in the road

There may be a well, and there may be a castle,

And there may be just more road.

I don’t know and don’t ask.

As long as

I’m on the road that’s before the bend

I look only at the road before the bend,

Because the road before the bend is all I can see.

It would do me no good to look anywhere else

Or at what I can’t see.

Let’s pay attention only to where we are.

There’s only enough beauty in being here and not somewhere else.

If there are people beyond the bend in the road,

Let them worry about what’s beyond the bend in the road.

That, for them, is the road.

If we’re to arrive there, when we arrive there we’ll know.

For now we know only that we’re not there.

Here there’s just the road before the bend, and before the bend

There’s the road without any bend.