Success Is A Choice Ch 5

Focused Energy for Success

• Focus is essential: Natural tendency is to flit between tasks, wasting energy. Focus directs energy, like an octopus on roller skates, and maximizes talent.

The Power of Focused Energy

• Focus brings power: Without focus, individuals feel drained and unproductive. Focus creates direction and intentionality, leading to results.

Focus: Not Natural

• Cultural distractions: Modern life, with numerous choices, pulls people in many directions, diverting energy from goals.
• Lack of Intentionality: Often spending time on activities not aligned with one's true desires.
• Solution: Focus. One well-cultivated talent is more valuable than many shallow ones. Concentration is key to success in a world of distractions.
• Maintaining Focus: Be fully present (Jim Elliott), consider the bigger picture (impact on others and progress), and employ a system like a calendar to manage priorities.

Focus Increases Energy

• Clear Goals are Crucial: Defining targets for personal development is essential. Lack of focus scatters energy, reducing momentum and opportunities, while focus increases energy.
• Untapped Potential: Focus allows individuals to tap into internal strength and achieve previously unimaginable goals.
• Example of Focus: NASA's focus on reaching the Moon drew the best talent and ensured support to achieve their objective.

Focus Elevates You

• Impact of Focus: Focus distinguishes individuals in a sea of mediocrity. Striving towards goals elevates every person, even if they don't fully achieve every goal.
• Significance of Effort: Shooting for ambitious goals elevates the individual through the journey, even if the goal isn't reached.

Focus Expands Life

• Expanding Ideas: Collaborative brainstorming, focused on a specific project, allows individuals to expand ideas and generate more thorough insights.
• Narrowing Widens: Focusing on a desired outcome (e.g., a specific car) results in noticing more of that item in the environment.
• **Expanding is Exhausting:**Trying to observe everything at once exhausts and doesn’t yield the same results as focusing.

Focused Intention and Persistence

• Effort is Necessary: Maintaining focus requires effort to overcome distractions; it is not a natural state. Persistence is crucial.
• Sustained Attention: Successful individuals maintain focus like the baseball player Hank Aaron, who sustained focus for years and a predetermined timeline.
• Success as a Process: Success is a progressive realization of a worthwhile goal, not a singular event. Focusing is vital for any time-intensive process.

Increasing Focus

• Intentional Action: Every action should have a purpose and contribute to a stated goal. Being intentional increases talent and success.
• Challenging Excuses: Recognize that excuses for not pursuing a goal are often unproductive. Address those excuses.
• Past is Irrelevant: Don't dwell on mistakes of the past; focus on lessons and release. Focus on future steps toward success.
• Present Focus: Focus on today's tasks and learning, not yesterday's mistakes or tomorrow's uncertainties. This optimizes productivity and positive outcomes.
• Results-Oriented Focus: Focusing on rewards/achievement keeps you motivated. Difficulties should not overshadow the intended results.
• Prioritization: Chasing multiple goals will lead to ineffectiveness. Focus on a few top priorities.
• Prioritize Strengths: Focus on developing strengths rather than weaknesses. Time spent on strengthening weaknesses isn’t efficient.
• Delayed Gratification: Reward yourself after completing tasks to maintain focus. Focus is crucial to reaching desired goals.

Types of Interactions

• Positive Interactions: Effective interaction with others include refreshers, refiners, and reflectors. They can elevate and enhance personal and career growth.
• Negative Interactions: Some individuals will try to discourage or reduce your vision, or reject your talent, effort, and vision. Recognising this is important.

This quiz explores the importance of focus in achieving success and productivity. It discusses the cultural distractions that dilute our energy and how intentional focus can lead to greater results. Learn about strategies to maintain focus and the value of concentrated effort over shallow multitasking.