Focus

I have decided that I am a big fan of focus, not because I’m always good at it but because I’m not. I have a lot of interests, a busy life, and, like all of us, I live in a fast-paced world. It’s easy to decide that constant distractions and operating in a consistently fragmented way and juggling multiple demands is “just the way it is.”  Podcasts, emails, social media notifications, and the instant access of cell phones all add up to a barrage of daily interruptions.

I want to prioritize time for my exercising, journaling and meditating, enjoying family and pets, completing my book, paying my bills, writing this blog every week, running a business, finishing my book club selection each month, and making sure my clients are happy they chose me as their coach. I want to vote responsibly, stay current in my industry, and stay connected to beautiful friends, an aging father, and two young sons who live several states away. All of these and many more compete for my attention, and if I also prioritize my sleep, I’ve only got about 15 hours to get it all done every day.

But, when I do decide to truly honor a stated priority by turning off the cell phones and email notifications, holding the time block sacred, essentially putting the “Do Not Disturb” sign on my life, then I find focus. In this physical, mental, and emotional state, I get a very different outcome than I ever obtain at the opposite end of the spectrum. When my thoughts and actions are pulled in a million different directions, I often make mistakes which must be corrected later and feel overwhelmed and confused about what to do next which typically leads me to procrastination at best, and at worst, burnout.

What is the antidote for confusion? Clarity. And clarity is not found in a whirlwind.  It’s found in the stillness. Clarity is directly tied to focus, I’ve found. It’s what one of my mentors calls the “leverage of alignment.”  It’s actually a really simple formula. 1) Make a decision (and any decision is far better than wringing your hands while making no decision).  2) Put all your focus upon it.  3) Receive the clarity.  4) Do twice the work, with double the quality, in half the time. Seriously!

Making a decision to focus upon one of the competing priorities swirling around me at any given moment and giving it all my attention has helped me accomplish a lot more lately and feel better in the process. Once I decide to put all my focus upon one thing that I feel really good about, it’s like I can feel the convergence of powerful forces coming into alignment to help me not only complete it but also enjoy the doing of it.

Here’s an example:  I don’t really love working out, but I know it’s essential to maintaining the strength and energy I want going into my late 60’s, 70’s, and beyond. In the past, with my busy schedule it has been easy to procrastinate it into non-existence. And when I did do it, I was anxious to get it over so I could get back to the dozens of emails I could see popping up on my cell phone right by my side and hurry back to get my work completed by 5:00 so I could sit down with my husband who would be hoping for my attention during dinner so that we could get my suitcase packed for my business trip and get to bed at a decent hour so I could catch my early morning flight…. OMG!

Lately, I’ve been leaving my phone somewhere else and deciding to bring my entire focus to how much I love isolating and strengthening the muscles that will lift my grandchildren or easily keep the pace with the friends whom we hike with in gorgeous places or that glorious prickling sensation when I get that mid-walk endorphin release when I keep up a challenging pace. The more I do this the entire time, the more I want to do it and the more I discover ways to get in mini workouts wherever I am. The more I work out, the more clarity and focused energy I have for the next priority and the next and the next. When I sit down to work on finishing a chapter for my book (or any other project), I found my next area of focus quicker and produce better work in less time. One thing at a time with all the powerful Universal forces supporting me. It feels magical, but it’s really not. It’s actually highly practical when you’re leveraging alignment with a decision and giving it your undivided attention and focus.

This week, I’m encouraging you to become a fan of focus. Look at your priorities.  Pick one. Make a decision. Give it your undivided attention and focus on the best parts of the work—the parts that you love—and watch what happens to the next decision and the next. Watch what happens to the quality and ultimately the quantity of the work that gets done. Watch what happens to your relationships when you show up hyper-focused, totally present, and visibly enjoying the conversations. Meetings get better. Projects get done. When you stop the overwhelm, you begin to enjoy the doing of all things that are truly most important.

We’re not here to “get it all done.” We’re here to enjoy doing good work with good people and to build a good life that we can look back on and say we truly enjoyed.

“Focus is a matter of deciding what you’re not going to do.”

~ John Carmack