Present Moment Awareness: A Simple, Step-By-Step Guide to Living in the Now [Hardcover]

Shannon Duncan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2003

When Shannon Duncan retired as a multimillionaire before the age of 30, he discovered that his money and success were not the keys to his happiness. Through a series of revelations brought about through self-exploration, Duncan realized that what he was really searching for was to feel good about himself and thus feel safe and peaceful in the world - and that such inner peace could only be accomplished by living in the present moment. Duncan's book, Present Moment Awareness, is full of practical, down-to-earth advice for living in the present. Filled with accessible anecdotes and exercises, it shows readers how to drop their emotional baggage, discover the true causes of their discontent, calm their worries about the future, and start enjoying the peace and happiness that can only be found in the here and now.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Shannon Duncan has taken major concepts from ancient traditions and modern psychology and distilled them into an easy to understand guide to awareness. His book makes these often nebulous and difficult to understand concepts available to anyone desiring personal and spiritual growth.' -- Roger Jahnke OMD, author of The Healer Within 'I heartily recommend this genuinely illuminating book.' -- Lama Surya Das, author of Awakening the Buddha Wit 'To be who we really are is the point of life. This book is a wonderful help in achieving that goal.' -- Brother Wayne Teasdale, author of The Mystic Heart --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

As a striving entrepreneur, Shannon Duncan had always thought that money and success would bring him happiness. But when he retired a multimillionaire before the age of thirty and could buy almost any possession or experience he wanted, he realized that the source of happiness was definitely elsewhere. Through a series of realizations, brought about through self-exploration and study, Duncan realized that what he was really searching for was to feel good about himself, and thus feel safe and peaceful in the world. Once he gained the opportunity to realize what wouldn't bring him peace, he began to understand that peace was always within him, underneath the turmoil, if only he would surrender enough to see it.

Duncan’s book, Present Moment Awareness, has already become a self-published word-of-mouth phenomenon, garnering praise for its practical, down-to-earth advice for living in the present. Filled with easy, accessible anecdotes and exercises, Present Moment Awareness shows readers how they can drop their emotional baggage, calm their worries about the future, and start enjoying the peace and happiness that can only be found in the present moment. Through a series of simple but enlightening concepts, Duncan shows how we can discover the true causes of our stress and discontent, transform our emotions from rulers into advisors, and start enjoying our lives, right here and now.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: New World Library (April 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1577314123
• ISBN-13: 978-1577314127
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,183,640 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm a believer!, January 11, 2002

By 

"jimbo231" (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Present Moment Awareness (Hardcover)

I received this book as a gift, and have to say that I was a bit skeptical. I've read the Power of Now, and thought it was quite wonderful - but had no idea how to get to this amazing place that Eckhart was describing. Now I do.

Present Moment Awareness, when combined with the focus tool, is nothing short of powerful and truly life changing. Instead of talking about all sorts of goody-goody stuff and trying to make himself some kind of a guru, this author shows that anyone can free themselves and become more and more "enlightened". Nobody is or can be more than a human being, and recognizing this can set you free!

Why suffer and toil through life, when you (or anyone for that matter) can flow through it. Shannon stated that "life can be less of a struggle and more of a pleasure when you learn what it means to be present in the moment." I've found for myself that this is very, very true.

57 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Living Today, December 29, 2002

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Present Moment Awareness (Hardcover)

"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." ~Theodore Roosevelt

The entire concept of "Present Moment Awareness" is based on a desire for peace or perhaps is as ancient as the "taking no thought for tomorrow" concept.

While distorting experiences are sure to evade your peaceful space, it might not be as difficult to pull back and observe what is occurring as you might think. There is a moment when you are so consumed in the moment it can devour you. This book is not about being consumed by the moment, but rather watching the moment pass by.

It is amazing that people often feel as if they always need to be doing something, as if to escape their thoughts or the reality of their situation. They find it difficult to genuinely relax and enjoy moments in their life because they feel an certain "level of dissatisfaction" with their lives. Many times they are limited by their past failures or threatened by the thought of failure in the future, otherwise known as "worry." This worry then limits our potential to experience good.

Shannon Duncan encourages us to live our life with a "relaxed confidence." He explains how humans want to be valued, noticed, understood, respected and loved. When our perception is distorted, we can have a different version of reality.

"When your perspective on life shifts, changes in your feelings and behavior will naturally follow suit. Your life can become less of a struggle and more of a pleasure when you learn what it means to be present in the moment." ~Shannon Duncan

You are still allowed to have emotions, but they are "observed" and not taken as seriously. You "pass through the dissatisfaction."

This book will encourage you to:

Let go of the mental static
Decrease your inner turbulence
Just "Be" in the moment
Let go of daydreams and worries
Release overwhelming emotions
Shift your Perception
Stop being tense and emotionally reactive
Stop creating your own emotional suffering
Cease pointless wrestling with circumstances beyond your control
Realize your dreams
Focus on the good in your life
Improve communication with those around you

This book is part of a program and you might want to order the "Focus Tool." At first I couldn't figure out what this was until I saw a picture on the back flap of the cover. It is a waking alarm clock that has vibrating or audible alerts, perhaps like a beeper. There are various exercises you do when the beeper goes off. These change throughout the book, but all are to bring you back to the present moment.

Perhaps the best way to enjoy the moment is not to be worried about your eternal destiny. This was not discussed and I think it is crucial to being able to live a worry-free existence. This is not a religious book however as James Baldwin once said: "If you're afraid to die, you will not be able to live."

May you find the peace only God can give while you live in the present moment.

~The Rebecca Review

53 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to achieve inner peace, July 31, 2002

By 

Joseph H Pierre "Joe Pierre" (Salem, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Present Moment Awareness (Hardcover)

This is a good one!

I had just finished The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle (which I reviewed favorably here), when this book came into my hands. I could say many of the same things about it that I said about Mr. Tolle's book. There are a few differences, but the basic message is the same: right Now is where all life occurs. The past is finished and cannot be changed, and its main function is to enable us to use the wisdom gained there to make our choices Now. The future is not yet here, and is not predestined. Our choices, which we can only make right Now have a dynamic effect on what the future will hold. All actions, choices and changes are made in the immediate Now. Everything that was ever done was done in a Now.

The other message which (Mr.) Shannon Duncan teaches is the importance of examining the beliefs and prejudices you hold.
As Dr. Robert Anthony said, "If you don't change your beliefs, your life will be like this forever. Is that good news?" Or, Ludwig Borne's statement, "Getting rid of a delusion makes us wiser than getting hold of a truth." But perhaps Henry Ford got more directly to the point when he said, "He can who thinks he can and he can't who thinks he can't. This is an inexorable, indisputable law."

We have all heard people say things like, "I've never been good at math." And so, of course, they are not good at math. And those who say, "I've always loved to paint" are usually proficient at painting. Such preconceptions and thoughts are a powerful form of self-suggestion, or self-hypnosis, if you wish.

What if you examined your self-assessment and your beliefs about what you can and cannot do for their objective accuracy? Will the negative assessments stand up to close scrutiny? What objective evidence is there that suggests their accuracy?

This is the kind of thing this book is about, together with some relatively simple exercises to help you achieve inner peace.

Like The Power of Now, the refreshing thing about this book is not that it contains any wisdom not previously available--for those conversant with Eastern wisdom, many of these observations are "old hat," but the Vedas, the writings of the Buddhists, and the Tao are so filled with Eastern jargon and nomenclature that it makes the lessons found there hard to assimilate for a Westerner. The refreshing thing about this book is that it was written in plain English by a contemporary Westerner--and written very well indeed, I might add. It is extremely easy to understand, and the exercises are relatively easy to accomplish with any investment of effort at all.

I recommend this book highly; especially to those souls who are unnerved by their chattering minds, and whose own thoughts of remorse over past actions or fears of the future are causing them mental anguish.

You will find peace here, if you read this book, take it to heart, and practice the author's exercises.

Joseph Pierre

author of The Road to Damascus and other books