Posted by Ryan Lou
Filed under Start-up Lessons | |
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I recently got a wake-up call from a friend about the need to focus.
I’ve been in this phase where business ideas just seem to pop into my head. They’re not all the “wouldn’t it be awesome if…” ideas yet (initial ideas almost never are). But I’ve now come to realize, that if you are chasing two rabbits, both will escape.
So I decided to read about focus and here’s what I’ve picked up from John Maxwell’s book ‘Talent is never enough‘
“If you want to be successful, you must focus on what you can do, not what you can’t”
- Focus doesn’t come natually to most people
We live in a world where opportunities abound, even worse than that, distractions are aplenty. There’s facebook, twitter, youtube, blogs, television, advertising messages, email and worst of all.. Laze..Systems and constant reminders help you stay on track. I think the key is to take time each day to reflect on whether what you’ve done that day contributes to the greater goal of what you want to achieve and where you want to take your business.
- Focus increase your energy
I have to admit, I’ve been trying to increase energy levels on slow days with… a can of Red Bull. John quotes polar explorer Admiral Richard E. Byrd “Few men during their lifetime come anywhere near exhausting the resources within. There are deep wells of strength that never get used.”The lack of focus is one of the reasons the wells of strength we have go untapped.
- Focus must be intentionally sustained
We do not natually remain focused. I have a sticker label on my laptop with the word “NOW” on it. It’s there to constantly remind me to focus on what I can do now.John suggests that we reflect on where we have been putting our focus. Try to break down your thinking time into the past, present and future according to percentages (they should add up to 100%)He suggests spending 90% of your time thinking about the present and only 5% on both the past and the future. The irony is that the better you spend the present, the better your future becomes.
So, what does focus and the lack of focus mean to you today? And what are you going to do about it?
