There is something powerful that happens when you realize you are not the same thing as your thoughts. This chapter sets the foundation for everything that follows in Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now, and in the video above, I share some reflections and personal stories to help make these big ideas a little more real.
You are invited to read, reflect, and if something resonates, check out the full video for a deeper dive. You can also find a full video for every chapter of this book here: Watch the full series on YouTube
You Are Not Your Mind
It is a strange concept at first. Most of us walk through life completely identified with our thoughts. We do not say it out loud, but we often live as if we are our minds. Whatever thoughts arise become our experience. We are so used to it, we barely notice it. Like a fish being asked how the water feels, we just assume our thoughts are reality.
In Chapter 1, Eckhart suggests something radically freeing. What if we could become the observer of those thoughts instead of being swept up by them?
When I first tried to do this, I “failed” constantly. I would say to myself, today I am going to watch my thoughts. And then I would forget, and just follow them around all day. But the more I practiced, the more I started to catch myself. I noticed patterns. I noticed the same thought looping over and over again, sometimes for days or weeks.
Eventually, I was able to sit quietly and watch the stream of thoughts. Not change them, not judge them. Just watch. And something strange happened. The more I watched, the more I realized that the thoughts never really stopped. Just thought after thought after thought. And yet in that watching, I started to find a kind of peace that was not coming from the thoughts themselves. It was coming from the part of me that could observe them.
The Present Moment Is All You Ever Have
This idea seems obvious at first, but most of us spend very little time actually living in the present moment. We are caught up in past regrets or future worries. I used to call myself a “futurist”. Always dreaming, always planning, always chasing the next thing.
But the truth is, the future does not exist yet. It is just a concept in our minds. And the past is gone. It lives only as a memory. The only place anything real ever happens is here, now.
Eckhart invites us to return to this moment again and again. Even something as simple as washing your hands can become a practice in presence. Instead of narrating the experience in your head, just feel it. Smell the soap. Notice the temperature. Do the task fully, without commentary.
I tried this, and realized how quickly my mind wanted to explain and label everything. It took a little while, but when I finally dropped the story and just paid attention, I began to feel more grounded. And that kind of presence started showing up in other places too. In conversations. In the way I listen. In the way I respond to people I love.
What Happens When You Start Watching
When you begin to notice your thoughts, you also begin to realize how much of your suffering is created by them. I used to struggle with insomnia. I would lie in bed, mind racing, solving problems that did not even exist. My body was safe, the room was quiet, but my mind was in a storm of imagined scenarios. All of it felt real, and none of it actually was.
This practice of watching my thoughts, without judging them, has changed the way I experience my life. I am not perfect at it. The thoughts still come. But I am getting better at noticing them. And when I do, I remember that I have a choice. I do not have to follow every single thought that shows up. I can return to the moment, again and again.
Watch the Full Video
If any of this resonates with you, I encourage you to watch the full Chapter 1 video at the top of this page. In it, I walk through these ideas with more personal stories, practical examples, and a few gentle reminders that have helped me stay grounded in my own journey.
This is part of a full 10-part video series, with one video for each chapter of The Power of Now. If you are walking through this book or returning to it again, you are not alone. We are in this together. You can watch the whole series here: Watch the full series on YouTube
If something stood out to you in the reading or the video, I would love to hear about it. Leave a comment and share your favorite part or any ah-ha moments that came up for you.
Leave a Comment