Focus

That is my word for 2026. I am not good at it. I am easily distracted and try to do too many things at one time. But I recently came across another way to think about focus.

Focus means choosing what does not matter.

Think about that. We think focus allows us to do more. Maybe we focus on the wrong things. What you choose not to do determines what you can do. Perhaps focus is meant for us to be able to do less better?

Maybe I have been looking at it all wrong. Maybe I need to decide NOT to do something!

Focus

A Passion for Excellence (Not Power)

 

Our world focuses a lot on the concept of power. We pursue power. We admire power. We curse power. We are measured on power. But power does not equate excellence.

There is a big difference between a passion for excellence and a passion for power. The pursuit of excellence is a God given gift. It is a critical component in society. It is characterized by a healthy respect for quality, and the use of God given talents in ways that please Him.

The pursuit of excellence glorifies God. The pursuit of power glorifies oneself. The quest for excellence is a sign of maturity. The quest for power, not so much.

Focus

 

Maybe it’s my age…or maybe it’s just the world we live in. Either way, I’ve noticed it’s harder to stay focused for any length of time. Distractions are everywhere.

It’s amazing how quickly we learn about breaking news and world events through social media, smartphones, and the internet. And then there’s the rest, all the useless information that fills our feeds and steals our attention. Interruptions are always just a tap away. But focus matters. It’s the difference between staying busy and being productive. Between motion and progress. The way we receive and share information may have changed, but one thing hasn’t, results still matter. If we’re not producing results, whether at work or at home, we’re not truly succeeding.

Guard your focus like it’s your most valuable resource because it is. Tune out the noise and give your best attention to what truly moves you forward.

“The ability to concentrate and to use your time well is everything if you want to succeed in business; or almost anywhere else for that matter.”

-       Lee Iacocca

Wisdom

 

I don’t know about you, but I pray for wisdom every day. I believe that God grants wisdom. But we also earn it, or gain it, through life experiences. Some of us are better than others at turning life experiences into wisdom.

What if we had wisdom much earlier in life? Imagine navigating friendships, choices, and mistakes with the perspective we gain over time. Less worried about fitting in, more focused on what truly matters. We might have stressed less over things that didn’t last and appreciated simple moments more. But maybe growing up is part of God’s plan, it is meant to be messy and uncertain, so we must earn that wisdom the hard way.

“Wisdom in your teens would be a lot less fun”

-       Taken from the Luke Bryan song – “Most People Are Good”

If we knew then, what we know now…

Your Lane

Swim in your lane.

Every second you spend looking at a person in another lane comes at the cost of your progress.

Focus on yourself.

*Taken from Farnam Street Blog

Revenge

Revenge can be a very misguided motivator in the business world.  Healthy business competition is a good thing. This country was built on it. Revenge, however, is an unhealthy motive in business, and in our personal lives for that matter.  Revenge distorts one’s vision and causes us to lose focus.  It can lead to actions and decisions that are inconsistent with business goals and values.  All business initiatives and decisions should be checked to confirm their alignment with the corporate mission.  If they are found to be simply for the sake of revenge, they should be avoided lest they weaken the mission.  Don’t let revenge drive your business decisions.

An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind. 

- Mohandas Gandhi

Intensity Is Common, Consistency Is Rare

Think about it. There are a lot of people who are temporarily, or occasionally, very intense. But, intensity without consistency does not get the job done. Consistency is easiest accomplished when one is focused. It is easier to be consistent when we are focused, not scattered. Without a focus, everything becomes a distraction. Focus is closely related to consistency. 

Focused people eliminate options, not accumulate them. Warren Buffett exemplifies this, he’s made a fortune by carefully selecting a few investments and sticking with them for decades, ignoring thousands of other opportunities.

Strive to be consistent…

Movement

 

Our goal as leaders, public speakers and thought leaders should be almost singularly focused on movement. It matters not what we say, the message we deliver, or the thoughts we convey, if they do not lead to movement. When I say movement, I mean action. I mean forward movement. I mean progress. That's what we want to instill in teams and organizations. Forward motion should be our constant goal.

Sure, we can speak on platitudes and concepts, but if they don't lead to action (movement) what good have we done?  Think about your next staff meeting. What about your next company address? How about your next one-on-one with your team leader? Are you conveying a message that creates movement? I feel like it's one of the greatest leadership questions we can face. Are we encouraging movement? Does our leadership result in action?

Who will you help move forward this week?

Start Somewhere

 

Sometimes you just need to get started.  However, don’t you want to wait until you have enough time, or you are in the right mood, or you have every possible required tool at hand?  I do!  Why do we put off getting started?  We have tons of reasons, better yet excuses that delay our start.   Often, it seems daunting to start a big project.  It can be paralyzing to face something that we know will require concentration and focus.  We search for tasks that we know require less time or we get distracted with less important action items.  Start somewhere.  Break the project down into consumable bites.  Set attainable goals that build towards completion of the larger project.

Just start…

Twenty Minute Magic

 

I think it is interesting what the use of Outlook calendars and others has done to our scheduling habits. Everything we schedule falls into 30 minute or one-hour increments. I mean Outlook defaults to that, and we just tend to fill in the blocks. We all know that calls and meetings do not always need to take up to 30 minutes or an hour (Note to my assistant), but our calendars are full of nicely blocked meetings. Not surprisingly, mine are color-coded.

Do you know why the maximum time limit for a Ted Talk is 17 minutes? There has been a lot of study regarding attention spans and the length of time we can focus. Several articles and podcasts have recently addressed the power of a twenty-minute meeting, including an “At The Table” podcast. There is power in knowing that you only have 20 minutes to accomplish something; You have to act fast. There is also the popular concept of a huddle or a stand-up meeting. The idea is to conduct a quick exchange of information, update and move on with the day.

There are nice, neat, blocks in Outlook. That does not mean that we need to use the full 30 minutes or hour. Have the courage to schedule meetings, or end meetings, sooner. No need for a meeting to take a full hour only because it was scheduled to do so.

Explore twenty minute magic…

Starve Your Distractions, Feed Your Focus

 

I am not good at this. I am so easily distracted. This is not easy to do in our social media, text message, internet world. How much more productive would we be if we could do this? Even if we could just do it during work hours. How much would our productivity go up?

 

It is a simple concept, not so easy to put into practice.

 

How are you at this?

Followers…The True Test of Leadership?

 

Any worthwhile discussion of leadership will focus on the concept of willing followers. There has been much written about leadership skills, qualities, methods, and systems, but the true test of leadership is followers. There is an old leadership proverb that says… “He who thinks he leads but has no followers is only taking a walk.” Excellent leaders are marked by willing followers. Willing followers are not subordinates who have no choice but to follow. True followers are those who follow when they have the freedom not to. We are all followers in some roles in our lives and leaders in others. Think about what causes you to follow certain people, and then consider those traits in your leadership roles. I don’t know about you, but when I am in a leadership role, I do not want to be just taking a walk! The true test of quality leadership is committed followers.

 

Have a blessed week!

’22 and You

 

Happy New Year! Welcome to the first Monday of 2022. Are you excited for the new year? I like this time of the year, not necessarily for making resolutions, but for refocusing. It is a great time to assess where you are professionally and personally and, to set new goals accordingly (call them resolutions if you like).

What will you change, accomplish or improve in 2022? Nothing changes if nothing changes, and it all starts with a plan. Start by choosing one or two things, not thirteen or thirty. Make them realistic, reasonable and significant. Focus on them and plan on how to accomplish them. Everyone sets goals and plans differently, but those with no plan at all never seem to change or accomplish anything.

What will you do for you in 2022?

Mind Games

 

I have read that over 66,000 thoughts flow through our minds every day.  I’m not sure if that is factual, but if it is anywhere near that many it is staggering.  No wonder I can’t focus. That also explains the fact that I can talk myself into believing almost anything.  The real challenge is what we do with all that thought power.  Too often those thoughts are negative.  Thoughts like the devil tempting us and thoughts like our own self-doubt.  We can be our own worst enemy with negative thoughts.  Clearly the preference is to use those thoughts to bolster confidence, to instill a positive attitude.  Remember the MMM a few weeks ago, "Choose Your Me”.  Our thoughts are incredibly powerful.  The mind can push our bodies beyond perceived limits.  It can strengthen us in times of loss and encourage us in times of doubt.   Controlling all of our thoughts is probably not possible, but controlling our thoughts when we need them to be positive is a great skill. 

 

Life is largely a mental game.  How we handle tens of thousands of thoughts per day plays impacts us significantly.  Our thoughts need to be positive, supportive, encouraging, and challenging, not negative.  What kind of games is your mind playing on you?

Adversity

 

Any discussion of adversity is not complete without addressing the faith opportunity that adversity presents.  The only appropriate response to the challenges of life is a faithful reliance on God.  Adversity is part of God’s plan for us and the “Why” is usually something we do not understand.  Suffering is often a part of life.  Obviously, the degree of suffering may vary, but we do suffer, and that too is a part of God’s plan.  A true dependence upon God should be our focus when facing adversity, suffering and pain.  God’s blessing will see us through, and we will be stronger and wiser because of the experience.

When we suffer, we can easily get bogged down with the “why” question.  Why is this happening?  But we may never know the why.  God has not promised to tell us the why.  We can ask Him but He may not tell us.  He is more concerned with our future than our past, with our response to the suffering rather than the cause of our suffering.

Jeff Wells

Pastor, WoodsEdge Community Church

 

Recognition

Great leaders recognize the efforts and successes of those that work with them. Sincere recognition and appreciation develops deep loyalty and spurs motivation. But, when it comes to our own motives, we need not be concerned about recognition.  Great leaders do not worry about accolades coming their way.  They are focused on the direction, goals, and accomplishments of their team. Recognition comes naturally to quality leaders; they need not worry.  The satisfaction of leadership comes in recognizing others and developing them as people and as leaders.  Consider this quote from a somewhat well know President. Happy Presidents’ Day!

“Don't worry when you are not recognized,

but strive to be worthy of recognition.”

--Abraham Lincoln

Be a Blessing

Have you ever felt truly blessed by another individual?  Maybe it was a close friend supporting you through a tragedy. Possibly it was a total stranger who blessed you with a random act of kindness. Or maybe it was a church group that covered you in prayer. Those blessings feel good, don’t they?

Think about the origin of that blessing.  Consider being the one that is a blessing to others. There is nothing more endearing than a genuine act of kindness.  One of the most powerful things you can do as a human being is to care for another individual.  Being a blessing to others is not difficult or expensive. It simply requires a mindset that’s focused on others and not ourselves. We have all had that warm feeling of being blessed by others.  Why can’t we make it our priority to grant those warm feelings to those around us?

As we head into this holiday season still in the midst of a pandemic, make it your goal to be a blessing to those around you.  

Attitude

I have written before, as many have, about the importance of attitude.  Most such writings focus on the power of a positive mental attitude.  Much credit is given to the strength of a proper attitude.  The power of positive thinking is a popular concept and a valid one.  What about the power of a bad attitude?  What about the impact of a negative attitude?  What is the cost of having the wrong mental attitude?  Consider the thoughts of the third President of the United States.

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude
from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the
man with the wrong mental attitude.”

-Thomas Jefferson

Important versus Urgent?

I don't know about you, but I am not very good at taking care of the important things in life as opposed to the urgent things.  I seem to I focus on urgent issues of the day, often just to put a check mark in the box.  There are things that are urgent that we all have to take care.  There are also things that are very important that we should take care of.  It always seems urgent to answer emails, return calls, go to the grocery store, and do the laundry.  Granted those are mostly necessities and they need to be addressed.  However, there are more important things like consoling a troubled neighbor, spending quality time with your kids, mentoring a young associate, or visiting an elderly relative.  There are important things in life that we should prioritize above the urgent issues of the day.  As you plan your day, think about the important versus the urgent...

Happy Monday Morning!

A Broader Focus

Do you spend time pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone?  Do you intentionally seek to grow in areas where you are uncomfortable?  Do you force yourself to focus on things you are not really interested in?  To grow as a truly well rounded and balanced person and leader, you need to be doing all three. 

Mark Wahlberg is featured in the current issue of “Entrepreneur”.  Consider this quote from that article…

“When I was younger, I was able to focus on things I was interested in, but I had no time and no desire to focus on or be disciplined about things I wasn’t interested in, he answered, “And I realized that I needed to be disciplined all around, in every capacity – and that would allow me to become successful, or at least have the best chance to succeed.”

The writer went on to state…As we get older, we don’t become different people – we become bigger people, understanding the many multitudes of things we must consider, and care about, and take on.  Our pathway to success isn’t just about going forward, but about going wide.

Take an interest in something new this week. Be intentional about going wide, not necessarily deep.