The Power of Focus

It’s one of my favorite times of the year, when I can enjoy a fresh start and a clean slate. It can be an emotional or sentimental time, as I reflect on life and what I’ve gone through and accomplished in the past year. Then, I love to look ahead and begin to think through what changes I’d like to make in the coming year and set some goals or “resolutions.”

Will you make it past “Quitter’s Day”?

Did you know that it only takes about 2 1/2 weeks for people to give up on their resolutions that they set? In fact, they’ve actually named January 19 as “Quitter’s Day.” That’s the date that most people have already thrown in the towel on their resolutions. Accidents happen, and I may get thrown off the plan I’m working to accomplish my goals. It’s easy to think, “What’s the use? I’ve already blown it.”

I believe one of the reasons people throw in the towel is because they lack focus. Many times, we are excited about the new year and about setting our goals. We start listing them and end up with way too many. They are all good things, but because of the large number of them, none of them get our full focus. If you look at extraordinarily high achievers, what you will find in their stories every single time is this amazing power of focus they possess. It’s almost a superpower for those who achieve incredible things.

What is focus?

Focus is a point of concentration or a point where all of your energy goes. Think of a laser. A laser is a device that emits a powerful beam of condensed light. You can condense that light so much that it can actually cut through metal.

That same concept can work in our lives. Tony Robbins said, “Where focus goes, energy flows.” As you focus on something with all of your attention, it will produce large amounts of energy that will be the fuel you need to crush your goals.

Sean Brawley, co-founder of the Inner Game School of Coaching, said, “The ability to control your attention determines how well you perform any task.” I would highly recommend that you watch Sean’s Ted Talk called “The Power of Focus.” As we’ve discussed, focused attention will result in large amounts of energy, which then can be used to break through obstacles that I encounter as I work toward achieving my goal(s). I will see significant forward movement in my life.

Another great resource on the power of focus is written by Michael Phelps’ coach, Bob Bowman. His book is entitled, The Golden Rules: Finding World Class Excellence in Your Life and Work. It unpacks the extreme focus that was required of Michael during his training.

A word about multitasking

Many of you may struggle with focus because you are a self-proclaimed “multitasker.” Did you know that according to scientific studies, it is impossible to multitask? The Harvard Business Review calls multitasking a “myth.” The study found that when we try to multitask, productivity decreases by up to 40%.

There’s really no such thing as multitasking. We are merely bouncing back and forth between more than one thing. We are truly only thinking about one thing at a time.

What if you were to focus this year?

This year, what would happen if you got really intentional about setting fewer goals? That’s probably not what you would expect me to say, but what if you set fewer goals..maybe 2? or maybe even 1? You will increase your chances of following through and not participating in “Quitter’s Day.”

Then, next year, pick another one or two things to be laser-focused on accomplishing. Then the next year, do the same. Every year, you will accomplish a major change in your life by the goals you are achieving. 5 years from now, you will have accomplished 5 significant things in your life. Think about the life-changing difference that would make for you.

Are you ready? What are the one or two things that you would like to put all of your energy and focus on this year?

I hope this content has been helpful to you. Please be sure to share this blog and the Breakthrough Podcast with others. We’ll dive into this topic and other new topics every month.