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Are You Being Present?

Are You Being Present?

The Presence Projects 110 Episodes Jul 31, 2026

This podcast is about the practice of being present in daily life, exploring what it means to choose presence over the pull of the ego. Each episode looks at a different aspect of this work, including the habits, programs, and tools that pull you away from the present moment, and how to return to it. The show encourages listeners to recognize that presence is a choice made moment by moment. It offers guidance and encouragement for repeatedly making that choice.

Episodes

Episode 110 - Embracing Detachment with Presence
Episode 110 - Embracing Detachment with Presence Jul 31, 2026 13:16 The Buddhists believe the root of all suffering is attachment. This episode presents that idea and integrates it into ego work because attachment is a tool of the ego, and it has been used against you relentlessly for far too long. Inside this episode you will better understand what detachment actually is, and what it is not. The more detached you are, the more you can truly appreciate the people,
Episode 109 - Stop Allowing Your Ego to Abuse You, Confuse You, Upset You, & Distract You
Episode 109 - Stop Allowing Your Ego to Abuse You, Confuse You, Upset You, & Distract You Jul 26, 2026 13:30 If someone else in your life talked to you the way your ego does, you would call it abuse. So why do we allow it? Why are we complicit? This episode turns the question directly on the listener. Why are you allowing your ego to confuse you, to upset you, to distract you, to eject you from the present moment? Just sitting with that question is part of the gap, part of the pause, part of the practice
Episode 108 - Doing Ego Work in the Present Moment
Episode 108 - Doing Ego Work in the Present Moment Jul 24, 2026 22:20 After episodes spent naming ego programs and tools of the ego one by one, this one turns to the work itself. What ego work actually is. Where it has to be done. And why so few people are doing it. Ego work can only happen in the present moment, and the ego's job is to eject you from it. That is the juxtaposition at the heart of this episode. Inside, a look at the true power of the ego, how it can
Episode 107 - The Most Important Relationship You'll Ever Have Is Between You and You
Episode 107 - The Most Important Relationship You'll Ever Have Is Between You and You Jul 4, 2026 12:16 The most important relationship you will ever have is the one between you and you. Until you do your ego work, you are your ego. It uses your voice in your head to make you believe it is you, but it is a component of your personality, not the authentic version of you underneath it. This episode looks at why that relationship gets overlooked. We are raised to focus on relationships with family, t
Episode 106 - Anticipation Is a Tool of the Ego
Episode 106 - Anticipation Is a Tool of the Ego Jul 1, 2026 12:09 Anticipation is such a common tool, such a common motivator, such a common behavior. We anticipate things we perceive as good, bad, and indifferent, sometimes all three together. But what is anticipation actually doing to us, and how is it affecting the present moment itself? This episode makes the case that anticipation is a tool of the ego, one that becomes a presence roadblock. It brings some
Episode 105 - Seeking External Validation Is a Tool of the Ego
Episode 105 - Seeking External Validation Is a Tool of the Ego Feb 28, 2026 15:52 External validation feels good. But what happens when it runs out? This episode explores one of the ego's most powerful and pervasive traps: the endless pursuit of external validation. From the praise of parents and teachers in childhood to the approval of employers, spouses, and peers in adulthood, most of us have been deeply conditioned to measure our worth through the eyes of others. And the
Episode 104 - Identifying Ego Programs in the Present Moment
Episode 104 - Identifying Ego Programs in the Present Moment Feb 22, 2026 13:51 Ego programs run like computer viruses in the background of your mind, silently sabotaging your present moment and creating self-inflicted suffering. Drawing from 15 years of clinical observation across 103 podcast episodes, this deep dive reveals what ego programs are, how to identify them in real time, and why they keep you trapped in patterns that have nothing to do with reality as it actually
Episode 103 - "I Am Sick" Is a Program of the Ego
Episode 103 - "I Am Sick" Is a Program of the Ego Feb 19, 2026 12:37 "I am sick" isn't a statement of fact - it's an ego program that makes you become the very illness you claim. This episode examines how the powerful declaration "I am" followed by "sick" creates ownership of disease rather than acknowledging temporary imbalance. Drawing from 15 years of clinical observation and personal experience, we explore how this pervasive ego tool keeps you trapped in fear,
Episode 102 - Stop Catastrophizing, Be Present!
Episode 102 - Stop Catastrophizing, Be Present! Feb 19, 2026 12:37 What if most of your suffering is self-inflicted? Catastrophizing robs you of the present moment by spinning worst-case scenarios that never materialize. Your mind creates entire disasters from nothing, projecting distorted memories onto an imagined future while reality unfolds peacefully right in front of you. This episode cuts through the madness. Drawing from thousands of clinical observations
Episode 101 - Embracing Change in the Present Moment
Episode 101 - Embracing Change in the Present Moment Feb 16, 2026 12:53 Change is inevitable, but our resistance to it creates suffering. In this episode, we explore why we struggle with change, how safety and comfort keep us trapped in familiar patterns, and what it means to embrace change with presence instead of fear. Drawing from personal experiences with injury, observations from clinic work with aging patients and career transitions, and practical presence tools
Episode 100 -Experiencing the Life Reset Button With Presence
Episode 100 -Experiencing the Life Reset Button With Presence Feb 13, 2026 16:17 What happens when everything you've built disappears overnight? This episode explores the profound experience of having your life reset button pushed - when natural disasters, loss, business failure, or sudden upheaval rips the floor out from under you. Speaking from direct experience of total loss and what I call "super survival mode," we examine how presence becomes both the most important and m
Episode 99 - "If, That, Then" Is a Game of the Ego
Episode 99 - "If, That, Then" Is a Game of the Ego May 14, 2023 14:33 The Presence Projects presents episode 99 of the "Are You Being Present?" podcast series.  Join Paul for a podcast that focuses on a game/program the ego plays in a variety of different scenarios that creates a significant amount self-inflicted suffering. The title and topic of this episode is "If, That, Then Is a Game of the Ego".  In this podcast Paul shares his personal, and clinical, experienc

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