Achieving what we most desire in life is a matter of focus. Where we concentrate our attention, resources and activity determines the results we obtain.
Though we instinctively know this to be true, we don’t always focus on what we most desire. Day to day challenge in our lives frequently take us to other destinations. Just like a ship in the ocean, when we navigate through a severe storm, it’s critical we remain firmly at the helm to assure we don’t arrive at an undesired destination.
The wind of life can be brutal and at times reaches hurricane force. For this reason it is common to lose focus. A simple and powerful exercise is to jot down each of our activities and the time each takes during the course of a typical day. When we analyze the results, we realize our time often disappears in activities which have nothing to do with our objectives.
Most of us are very clear about what we want in life. Yet when we consider what we do, it doesn’t always coincide with what we desire. In this case, we can change our focus and thus change our results.
Sitting down and focusing on a specific objective is no easy matter. Between the demands of our family, our work and others, how is it possible to focus on just one thing?
The same technology responsible for increasing personal and organizational productivity, can be an obstacle when it comes time to focus on a specific activity. Throughout the day we receive text messages, telephone calls, messages from MSN Messenger, a request for friendship from someone on Facebook, a call regarding an unexpected payment and so many other distractions.
If we aren’t careful, time slips away to satisfy the demands of others. While many of these activities bring pleasure and our ability to communicate with others at any moment is incredible, it is important to ask, “At what cost?”
When we are focused on satisfying the needs of a particular client, generally we succeed. When we are focused on physical exercise, we see the results in our stamina and in our energy. When we are focused on courting a person in whom we are interested, we gain their attention. When we focus on any activity, we make giant steps towards its completion.
It isn’t life or other people who stand in the way of what we most desire. Rather it is a lack of focus to dedicate the time necessary for its achievement. The next time we feel life slipping through our fingers like the sand of time, we can turn off the cell phone, close our e-mail and sign out of Messenger. By standing firmly at the helm of life and taking action to drive our own direction, we can achieve what we most desire because it is all a matter of focus.
∞ Rob McBride ∞
LL II 24
All our lives we are taught to “Do it right.” What if, on the other hand, from time to time we, “Do it wrong?”
Let’s look at the example of a baby just learning to walk. They do it “wrong” at first. We don’t expect the child to get up and start running around without first falling down a few times. Nor do we chastise the child for doing it “wrong” and falling. As is usually the case, it is not falling down, rather getting up which is most important. It’s the bounce that counts in so many things in life.
There is a time for everything and everything has its time…
What, you may ask, is the relevance of all of this and why should it matter?
We all have the same 24 hours in a day, a total of 1,440 minutes. The way in which we use this time determines whether we will be actors or spectators in life. There is a time for everything and everything in its time. When we consciously analyze what we do and how we do it, we enhance our ability to achieve our objectives.
To direct your destiny, I propose you take 2.22%, equivalent to 32 minutes of your time, and invest it directly in yourself. 2.22% is the small difference which can reap great rewards.
We can make excuses or we can get up and take action. We all know we should exercise; few of us actually do something about it.
Things are easier said than done. It is easy to say what we should do; actually doing it is an entirely different thing. I have ended many of the events I have conducted with the same words from Al Batt:
To begin any journey, we need to take the ever important first step. If taking a trip, we make a phone call to a travel agency. If our journey is to go to the gym, we put on our tennis shoes, grab our keys and walk out the door. Any objective can be reduced to a series of actions which will direct us to our goal.
In the eye of the hurricane we find incredible peace and quiet. While the rain and wind of the hurricane howl demolishing all in its path, while creating disaster, in the eye of the hurricane the sky is blue and calmness reigns true.
Life is made up of moments…
Moments of inspiration which allow us to fly with the eagles during which everything seems to go right. Moments when we are connected with the universe and we flow naturally with change and turbulence which constitute the essence of life.
Moments of joy which nourish our soul and confirm that happiness should be the rule rather than the exception. Moments which transport us emotionally to another place and which open the doors to be happy with what we have and where we are in every instant, while acknowledging we can always improve.
In his Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech William Faulkner expressed the following:
When we start a conversation with someone, what is our focus? When we center our attention on the interests of the other person, our results will be better than if we concentrate on our desires. Nevertheless, the most significant person in the world should be ourselves. When we are true to ourselves and take care of our needs we can, in turn, take care of the needs of those who are important to us.
I love reading commentaries from my readers. Those which are positive and uplifting give me renewed energy to continue writing. Those which give direction and advice help me improve what I do. I am grateful for them all for they enable me to deliver messages which answer the question, “What’s In It For Me?”