How to Focus on The Important Things That Matter
Where Focus Goes, Energy Flows
As a kid in Tiyumba Basic School in Tamale, we once did an experiment with our science teacher. I do not remember the topic or the class now but the experiment has a lot to teach us about focus. In the experiment, we used a magnifying glass to concentrate (Focusing) the sun’s rays on a piece of polythene bag. Within a few minutes, the bag started to melt. Under normal conditions, a polythene bag will not melt under the sun. But the focus and concentration of heat given by the magnifying glass increases the heat concentration on the polythene making it melt in minutes.
Professional Motivational Speaker and International Coach Anthony Robbins said, “ Where Focus Goes, Energy Goes”. Whatever you focus on increases and grows because your focus determines where your energy goes. And this actually touches on the law of attraction which says you are a magnet and you attract to yourself what you think (focus, concentrate) about most. If you are constantly thinking “I don’t want a bad job” you will most likely attract that job you do not like because you are focusing on what you don't want instead of what you want. Some people grow up hating one of their parents and if that parent is the opposite gender, they swear to never marry such a person. And funny enough, some of these people end up marrying that same person they swore they would never marry.
What You Focus on is Important
Your daily activity is determined by what you focus on. What you do daily becomes your weekly activity and what you do weekly eventually becomes what you do in a lifetime. Watch your daily habits by directing your focus effectively. Where your focus goes, energy flows. That is a very powerful maxim for determining what you focus on. To start, focus on only positive things. As you may have realized, focusing on negative things (regardless of whether you think they are good or bad) will always result in a negative result. Instead of speaking and focusing on what you don't want (negative), focus on what you want (positive).
2 Circles; What You Can Do Vs What You Cannot Control
In the image, there are two circles and an intersection forming another section. The activities in your life can be summed into things that matter and things that you can control. We are naturally concerned about many things that matter to us. But we cannot always control all of what we care about. But what we can do is to focus on what we care about and can control. That way we do not end up focusing on what we cannot do. When one obsessively focuses on what they cannot control, they end up in an endless and hopeless loop of excuse-making. They constantly feel incapable and they would be right. Because you cannot control most of what happens in the world. But for the person who focuses on what they can control which also matters, they can identify things that they can do. The interesting part is that the more you take control of the things you can control, the more you are able to do and achieve.
Focus on The Important Things That Matter
Focus on what you can control and what is important. A mix of these two characteristics will give you a good idea of what you should focus on. Now your focus is good. But to focus efficiently, you need to align those activities with a core and underlying mission that you have carefully set for yourself. This prevents you from doing anything that pops up in your mind. You will be able to focus on not just what you can control, not just what matters but also what is well aligned with your core beliefs, values, and overriding mission.
