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Being present can save your life

I witnessed a climbing accident two days ago in the climbing gym. The climber fell 30 feet without being attached to any rope. Luckily he landed on soft mats and paramedics didn't seem to find any major injuries.

The guy meant to clip in into auto belay but his thoughts were somewhere else. (His own words). He climbed to the top, saw the sign "Are you clipped in?", didn't really think anything of that and just let go only to find out that he was not clipped in.

So this is probably the most stark example of how lack of presence in the moment can hurt us.

As a coach I work with a lot of very smart, highly intellectual people for whom their brain is their main tool. They think through, analyze, strategize, predict, problem solve. They are excellent at that.

Unfortunately sometimes it has this side effect that they are so much in their heads that they are not present. Not present for what is happening here and now, in their sensory experience in the moment.

They don't notice subtle things - sensations in their body, change of facial expression of their partner, shift in energy in the room. Or the fact that they are not safely clipped into a belay mechanism.

Most people don't climb, of course, but think about when was the last time you were not present in the conversation with your spouse (or child, or friend or co-worker). Or, you were not present for your own life at the moment, because you were planning for the future, worrying about the next thing or ruminating about the past. We all do it.

The consequences may not be our life or health in immediate danger, but it's likely manifested as relationship issues, or the subtle sense of dissatisfaction with life.

So what is presence? It simply means being aware of the present moment with intention and non-judgmentally. It's a skill which we can (and need) practice.

Here are some ways to cultivate presence:

Start with your breath - Take three conscious breaths before entering any meeting or conversation. This simple act anchors you in the now.

Practice the 5-4-3-2-1 technique - Notice 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear, 2 you can smell, 1 you can taste. This grounds you in your sensory experience.

Set presence reminders - Use phone alerts or sticky notes to pause and ask yourself: "Where am I right now? What am I feeling? What's actually happening?"

Listen with your whole body - In conversations, resist the urge to formulate your response while the other person is speaking. Instead, listen not just to their words, but to their tone, energy, and what's not being said.

Create transition rituals - Before switching tasks or entering new spaces, take a moment to consciously shift your attention to what's about to happen.

The climber in the gym got a second chance. In our daily lives, we might not get such dramatic wake-up calls, but the invitation is the same: to show up fully for the life we're actually living, not the one we're thinking about.

When we're truly present, we make better decisions, build stronger relationships, and experience more satisfaction. We also avoid missing the critical signs - whether it's a safety check in a climbing gym or the subtle cues that matter most in our work and relationships.

The question isn't whether you'll ever be distracted again - you will. The question is: how quickly can you return to presence when you notice you've drifted?

Your life - and the lives of those around you - might depend on it.