Recently, I stumbled upon the concept of the present-focused and the future-focused. A fascinating idea, that also helped me grasp why I act the way I do.
"In a present-focused mindset, you live for today and do what feels good right now. You are playful and impulsive, avoid anything boring or repetitive and get fully immersed in the moment."
"In a future-focused mindset, you use today as a stepping stone and do what’s best for your future self. You are driven, delay gratification and tend to live in your mind picturing the future."
Some are mostly present-focused, others mostly future-focused, but both mindsets are present. They balance each other. A focus on the present makes life fun, but too much present-focus can steal away the "deeper happiness of achievement."
Now, I look for this pattern everywhere.
Undisciplined or disconnected, careless or obsessed.
A constant back and forth.
Lost in time, or lost in the future. A great way to look at myself, and the people I interact with.
—MC Escher, Three Spheres II, 1946, 26.9x46.3cm, Litography
Read more about the present-focused or future-focused in Derek Sivers' Hell Yeah or No.