Why You Lose Your Focus (And What To Do About It)
http://ririanproject.com/2006/11/14/why-you-lose-your-focus-and-what-to-do-about-it/
“It’s not what’s happening to you now or what has happened in your past that
determines who you become. Rather, it’s your decisions about what to focus on, what
things mean to you, and what you’re going to do about them that will determine your
ultimate destiny.”
- Anthony Robbins
We all know how important it is to focus on what we want. But what happens when we
LOSE focus?
It’s easy to do, isn’t it?
In some cases, we never really get started on a goal plan
and we spend most of the year rudderless, bouncing from
crisis to crisis with no real progress in our life.
In other cases we make great progress and then something
(let’s call it LIFE) happens. All of the air gets out of our
balloon and we aren’t able to regain the momentum we
had earlier.
We get distracted. We suffer setbacks. We get interrupted.
We get sick or hurt.
Sometimes we don’t have the energy we had before and
often find it slow to get back in the game.
These things happen to everyone. And we have to be careful we don’t think we’re being
singled out. The “Why is this happening to me?” question gets us nowhere. We must first
recognize that we’ve lost focus. And at the earliest opportunity, we must recommit. We
have to get back on the horse we fell off from and ride again.
And this is what separates the winners from the losers.
The loser says it’s too hard. He says it’s not worth the effort. He thinks it’s just “not in
the cards” and he quits.
But the winner doesn’t take the setback personally. He dusts himself off and recommits
to the plan. He sees the setback as just that - a setback - not a sign that it’s not to be.
So how can we correct this problem? It’s easy. Here are the five steps:
STEP 1: Have a Vision. You need to have a vision that you can focus your thoughts on.
If you don’t have one, you are likely to have your thoughts going every which way.
Successful people have a vision. Many top sport professionals visualize their success
before they even do their event.
STEP 2: Know your Mission. A mission lists the rules about how you will achieve your
vision. If you don’t know what these rules are for your success it’s easy to make some
undesirable decisions. Successful people know the rules needed for their desired result.
STEP 3: You need to plan. A plan will provide you with a purpose and a focus for your
activities. If you focus on the wrong thing, you get the wrong thing. Plans are the focus
tool for all successful people. You can’t be in the winner’s circle without a plan to get
there.
STEP 4: You need to concentrate. When you are not concentrating you likely become
quite scattered and lose your focus. Successful people practice good concentration skills
and effectively to be able to produce results. You need to concentrate to focus on your
plan to get your desired success.
STEP 5: Know what’s important. When we can concentrate on what’s important we
don’t allow unnecessary distractions that cause us to loose our focus. Important things are
the ones that will bring you results. Successful people can sift out what’s not important.
Don’t waste your energy on what’s not important.
STEP 6: Refocus if you get distracted. Today’s a new day. The past is just as historic as
if it had happened a thousand years ago. You can’t change what’s happened or not
happened. But you CAN recommit. You CAN refocus.
Overall, don’t beat yourself when you lose that focus. Just get back on track and keep
working toward your goals, and you will continue to grow and prosper.