The Power of Focus, Part 2
A couple of years ago, along about late
March, my young daughter and I were having a
conversation about the approaching summer. With the sincerity and innocence that was true
to her age she asked, "so Daddy, when do you get
out of work for summer vacation?"
...and with one brief utterance, she reminded
me that I did not get a 2.5 month vacation in the
middle of the year. I had to go to work
every day. <sniff, sniff> For those
who might ask whether or not my job gave me paid
vacation time, the answer is yes...but not 2.5
months of it in addition to other holiday
breaks!
My daughter couldn't understand why things
have to be different for me now as opposed to
how it is for her, and by extension, how things were when I was in school. Suffice it to say, much is different.
Conversely, much is also the same. I
remember the fashion in which I studied. I
would normally have the radio on with music
playing in
the background. My Mom always
insisted that it would hinder my studies, but I
found that while the words and the melodies
crept into my subconscious, the lessons of the
material I was studying also found their way
into my memory. Today, I find that I can
be extremely productive with a little bit of
music in the background.
Video stimuli, on the other hand, is another
thing entirely. If there was a television
anywhere in my vicinity while I tried to study,
no knowledge would enter my brain. The
same pattern holds true today. If I'm
trying to focus on anything (writing, etc.), I
am almost helpless to keep my attention on the
task at hand when I can see a television
on nearby. Hours can slip by, and
little gets done.
I have identified visual stimuli as my
focus magnet. The truth is that
we all have focus magnets, and they often
operate in 'stealth mode'; they sneak up on us
quietly, and siphon off our attention little by
little. We might not even notice until we
take a good, hard look at where our time has
gone. Therefore it is my
responsibility to remove that distraction
when I need to be productive. If I cannot
remove the distraction, then I must remove
myself. When I do that, I find that my
productivity rises exponentially.
In our pursuit of excellence, we each have three responsibilities. First, we must identify the areas in which we want to achieve excellence. That is not
anyone else's job; only you can know what truly
drives you, and the areas in which you have the
passion for excellence. Second, we must
identify the things which will rob us of the
focus necessary to excel. Lastly,
we must take active steps to remove those
distractions, and to do it immediately, if we
have any hope of reaching our potential.
If you fail to live up to your responsibility
to yourself in any of these three areas, don't
complain to anybody about how things "just
didn't work out", or how "the odds just weren't
in my favor". To modify a phrase I coined
years ago (and I have the right to re-purpose it
since it is my quote, after all), "you can make
an excuse, or you can achieve excellence, but
you can not do both".
So what are your focus magnets? Look
around you and identify them. Could it be
the television, the telephone, or web browsing? Is it your e-mail, your co-workers or
your
family? Once you've identified your focus
magnets, de-magnetize them. Turn off the
television. Put your phone on silent for a
while. Close your office door and take
thirty minutes for a focused pursuit of
excellence. You'll be amazed at how much
you'll accomplish!
What's new for The Pure Excellence
Initiative?
First, you may have noticed that the
newsletter has a new look and feel. (If
you didn't notice...uhm...the newsletter has a
new look and feel...) We've enlisted the
help of a graphics artist and layout design
expert to make the look and function of the
newsletter match our stated goal: excellence.
Secondly, we've made it a little easier for
you to avail yourself of the recommended
reading. Instead of having to manually go
to
Amazon.com to find the book in question, you
are only one click away from being able to order
the book immediately. (Since this is a new
feature, we'll hold off on posting a new
recommendation, and give you a shot at the
previous one.)
Also, after several "false starts" the
Pure
Excellence website is within days of
rollout! (Yeah!) Included in the
site will be an archive of newsletter articles,
excellence-related quotations, a blog, and more. Be sure to check the site frequently for the
'go-live'.
In the meantime, feel free to visit
my personal
blog. I make no guarantees that the
entries written therein will follow any
particular theme. It will most likely be
along the lines of what catches my fancy on any
given day.
Seen the power of focus in action?
Have you personally experienced the power and
benefits of focus in a particular area of your
life? Have you witnessed it in others? The best
way to have this principle reaffirmed is to
learn about instances where it has been carried
out. Tell us about your example, so we can share
it with others who are involved with The Pure
Excellence Initiative.
(All personal and contact information will
remain confidential.)
Share an example of the Power of Focus!
Got a question on excellence you'd like to
see discussed?
If there is a particular aspect about or
subtopic of excellence that you've been
wondering about, you can submit it for
discussion. The process for doing this is quite
simple. Simply click on the link below to submit
your question/sub-topic for discussion.
Submit a question for the Pure Excellence
Initiative
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June 13, 2007
Jim Key
Founder & Director,
Pure Excellence Initiative
Recommended Reading:
Driven From Within
by Michael Jordan
Do you know someone who is interested in
pursuing personal excellence? Sharing the
Pure Excellence Initiative is as easy as
forwarding this email to them.
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