the meaning of "one day at a time"

[Jasmine_Jafari]

One popular exercise is to assign a chronically impatient person to stand in the longest line in the grocery store. The only answer is to take it one day at a time.
I can't get the meaning of one day at a time. Please help me. Does it mean only one day or more?

 

[Raymott]

Your sentence doesn't give a good example of one day at a time. But consider someone giving up smoking or alcohol.
"One day at a time" means that the person concentrates on not smoking/drinking for that day only, without looking any further ahead at the bigger task of giving up completely. Then the next day, they concentrate on that day only, and so on. It's actually an attitude to take rather than a different way of acting.

 

[cs4english]

Most people are really busy making plans for the future. We assume that our lives will not change much in the next 5, 10, or 25 years.

However, when something significant happens, like a severe illness, we suddenly begin to question the future. We ask, "Will I be alive next year?" Maybe, maybe not.

We realize that each day is important. We take life, one day at a time. We value life more. We realize that just being alive is special. We realize our friendships are special. We appreciate the air we breathe, the water we drink, the friends and family we have. We live life one day at a time.

Example: Before the car accident, I used to take life for granted. Now, though, I take life one day at a time. I'm just glad to be alive and to have my friends.