Dr. Pedram Shojai
Episode Description:
Most of us spend more than half our waking hours somewhere other than the present moment. In this week’s Lights On call, Pedram unpacks what he calls temporal displacement — the chronic habit of living in the past or future — and why it quietly drives stress, poor decisions, and accelerated aging.
Drawing on Harvard research by Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert, Pedram walks through the neuroscience of mind wandering, the default mode network, and why presence itself is the variable most correlated with unhappiness. He then introduces three somatic anchors — breath, gravity, and peripheral vision — and leads the group through a live practice combining all three simultaneously.
The call closes with a 24-hour homework assignment: three timed check-ins per day to ask “where is my mind right now?” and run the anchors if the answer isn’t the present.
Listen to the episode on Spotify here or on your favorite podcast platform and check out the Urban Monk Academy here.
Podcast show notes:
[00:00] The Temporal Awareness Experiment
- Pedram opens with a brief check-in exercise: close your eyes, take a breath, notice where your mind actually is
- Sets up the core question: where your mind lives moment to moment determines your energy, health, and quality of life
[00:02] The Research on Mind Wandering
- Harvard study (Killingsworth & Gilbert): we’re mentally present only 47% of waking hours
- Mind wandering — regardless of where the mind goes — correlates strongly with unhappiness
- Temporal displacement activates the HPA axis, raises cortisol, and burns resources meant for now
[00:04] The Default Mode Network
- The brain’s background processing system is designed to wander — threat simulations, autobiographical maintenance
- The real question: who’s driving the bus?
[00:05] The Three Temporal Anchors
- Breath: the only autonomic function you can consciously control; exists only in this moment
- Gravity: body weight contacting surfaces interrupts default mode wandering via proprioceptive circuits
- Peripheral vision: shifting to soft gaze quiets the default mode network and slows internal dialogue
[00:09] Live Group Practice
- Pedram leads the group through all three anchors simultaneously
- Holding three present-moment channels at once makes rumination nearly impossible
[00:14] What Temporal Displacement Costs You
- Relationships: physically present but energetically absent
- Decision-making: anxiety-driven choices based on past patterns, not what’s in front of you
- The body: chronic low-grade stress suppresses immunity, disrupts sleep, accelerates inflammatory aging
[00:17] The Practice Assignment
- Set three alarms daily: stop, ask where your mind is, run the anchors for 15 seconds if needed
- Bring data back to the group next week
[00:20] Q&A: Sleep, Balance Training, Morning Light
- Waking mid-sleep-cycle feels like a hangover; reverse-engineer wake/sleep times around full 90-minute cycles
- Proprioceptive balance training has real performance gains — Pedram references work with US Surfing and pro baseball
- First morning sun exposure sets your circadian clock; more important than nighttime sleep hygiene
[00:28] Closing: Austin Retreat and Upstream App
- Austin retreat end of May — spots filling
- Upstream: root-cause health research tool being gifted to Academy students before public release
Key Takeaways:
- We’re present only 47% of waking hours — mind wandering correlates directly with unhappiness
- Temporal displacement activates your stress response to things that no longer exist or haven’t happened yet
- The default mode network wanders by design; the practice is learning to choose where your attention goes
- Breath, gravity, and peripheral vision are three anchors that return you to now without fighting your thoughts
- Presence isn’t a destination — it’s a direction
- Morning light sets your circadian clock more than nighttime sleep hygiene
Resources Mentioned:
- Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert, Harvard mind wandering study
- Upstream (root-cause health research app, in development — Academy students only)
- Urban Monk Academy Austin Retreat, May 30–31, 2026
This episode is for educational purposes only and not intended as medical advice. Consult with qualified healthcare practitioners for personalized guidance.
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