What can I take to focus better?
“One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus; we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular. ” -Tony Robbins
This morning I woke up, brewed some Yerba Mate, caught a glorious rooftop sunrise and proceeded to get more done before breakfast than I had in the past 4 working days combined.
How about you? How many important things did you get done last week? I mean the things that actually got you closer to your biggest goals and dreams.
Take a minute to think about it and write a couple down. How many did you come up with?
For many the answer is few if any at all. Why?
In a word: Distraction.
Lack of focus is the most common killer of making things happen.
In the last 10+ years there’s been an unconscious shift from encouraging focus to condemning it. It’s happening without us knowing and we’re all likely victims. As soon as multitasking became possible and encouraged, our focus died.
Mine certainly did.
We have to fight our very best fight to get it back.
Leo Babauta is leading the charge with his book , which is more than worth the read. I hit up a sweet barefoot run with Leo last week where he filled me in on some of the good stuff. Unbelievably powerful.
Without focus we are headed for disaster and the consequences are as dangerous as they come.
What’s the biggest risk of losing our focus? Wasting our time and living a meaningless life.
The solution is to simplify. Get back to the basics of doing the important.
Here’s a brief 11-step guide to reclaiming insane Focus.
1. Know what actually matters. Be honest with yourself about the actions that truly move the needle in your business and your life. An 80/20 analysis is a great place to start. If you’re stuck, just think of the tasks you fear the most–that give you anxiety just to think about. Those are likely the most important.
2. Pick your top 2-3 core tasks each day. These are the things that must happen no matter what. If you get these done your day is a success. Stick to no more than three, or better yet one. They must move you closer to your big goals. Checking email does not count.
3. Do them first thing. For me writing is one of my core actions, so I write for an hour or so as soon as I roll out of bed or after my morning workout (it’s 5:45 am right now). The longer you wait, the more distractions will intrude. Nothing happens before these get done.
