Let’s see if the following scenario sounds familiar to you. You’re working on a project, and you get distracted. Minutes later, you’re distracted again and then shift over to another project. Then you get a phone call, and that distraction shifts your attention over to something else. Then you remember that you need to check your emails and now you’re on a whole other bunny trail. Sound familiar? And before you know it, it’s the end of the day and the first project you started with is still sitting exactly where you left it.
Or maybe it’s a goal that you’ve had in your mind, or a side project or a big dream that you’ve felt called to do – like my Daily Dose of Encouragement was for me. And you’ve wanted to do it but found that you just weren’t making any progress. You’re not sure why and you start to wonder if maybe you’re just not passionate enough about it. Maybe you’re worried it might take too much time or money.
All these things really require only one thing. Your focus. You can create real consistency, impact and change when you’re able to fully focus all of your energy on a single task, idea, process or endeavor. There are some pretty well known examples of this.
Warren Buffet is one of the most successful investors in the world. He has lived a life of entrepreneurial endeavors and strategic investments. He has a 5/25 rule, which states that out of 25 things you’d like to achieve, your top 5 should be the only ones that get your focus. Otherwise, you’re derailing yourself from your main goals by splitting your attention among so many.
Then there’s Bill Gates. In response to the question, “What factor do you feel has been the most important in getting to where you’ve gotten in life?” His answer? Focus.
Not only is focus crucial to achieving what you want in life, it also creates self-trust in your abilities. When you focus, you get things done. And when you get things done you prove to yourself that you can make things happen.
But sometimes focus is hard. It requires energy and clarity and when you’re spread so thin it may feel like you just don’t have enough. And that’s where intention comes in. When you practice small intentional acts over a period of time, that’s when you start to see real progress. When you create the intention to learn focus and then practice that intention, you’ll become unstoppable.
So, my encouragement for you today is to practice focus. Make time for yourself each day to focus on one thing. What is one goal or desire or dream that you’ve had that you just haven’t been able to move forward? Start with just 5 minutes on that. Just make it a time when you turn off all distractions. Turn your phone off, don’t scroll through social media, check emails or anything else that will take away your focus. Gradually keep adding to your daily focus time. In no time at all, you’ll see how your capacity for focus just soars. And the wonderful change that will make to your life.