Cars pass, clouds drift, the ESPN ticker keeps scrolling. Transient, temporary, fleeting—we expect movement. Cars come and go, clouds roll on, the ticker never stops. So why do we treat our thoughts, feelings, and experiences any differently? Why, when sadness creeps in, frustration rises, or negativity settles, do we assume it’s permanent? Instead of clinging to emotional constancy, we’d do better to remember the ancient wisdom: This too shall pass.
Mindfulness practice teaches us to embrace impermanence. By visualizing our thoughts and feelings as cars on a highway, clouds drifting in the sky, or scores scrolling on the ESPN ticker, we can detach from them and stop letting them control us. Recognizing the transience of emotions and thoughts not only fosters greater presence but also nurtures curiosity and reduces suffering.
In sport and performance, one negative thought or challenging emotion can signal the beginning of the end, the proverbial “here we go” moment—The beginning of the downward spiral. If, instead, performers embraced a more mindful approach and recognized thoughts and feelings as fleeting, they could more quickly regain composure, focus on the present moment, and control the controllable while they let the unhelpful pass by.