Why do over 50% of our new course students tell us that they feel completely overwhelmed and exhausted in their personal and professional lives?
The answer may surprise you: it’s not the number of minutes they spend awake and working hard every day, but the problem that they often spend 99% of those minutes juggling too many things at once.
Be honest…
Check social media apps on your phone when sitting in meetings or spending time with family and friends?
Do you have lunch at your desk or while you’re on the run?
Does the TV in your home often turn on, even if you do other things?
Do you occasionally send a text message while driving?
The biggest cost of doing multiple things like this (assuming you don’t crash by texting and driving) is a gradual, long-term decline in your productivity and happiness. If you get into the habit of permanently sharing your attention, you are partially involved in every activity, but rarely focus on one. And this dizzying lack of focus will eventually trip over you and bring you to your knees.
I learned that from my own experience. I was overwhelmed and burned out almost every day. I felt like I was in sixth gear around the clock, and yet I made no progress in my life (I was actually moving backwards). Things changed for me after I started blogging in 2006 when I gradually realized that I could get 2x to 3x more quality in writing if I focused without interruption for a set period of time and before I started a real one Paused away from my laptop. Since then, I’ve applied this strategy to all relevant areas of my life and urge you to do the same …
FOCUS. FOCUS. FOCUS.
One thing at a time.
Then give yourself a short break and repeat.
This will change your life!
No seriously, it will!
Remember that…
If you hold a magnifying glass over a small pile of dry leaves while the sun is shining on the hottest afternoon of the year, nothing happens …
… As long as you move the magnifying glass quickly from one sheet to the next.
However, once you hold the magnifying glass still and focus the sun’s rays on a single sheet, the entire pile of leaves will ignite in flames.
That is the strength to concentrate on one thing at a time.
Your chance now is to realize that you are the magnifying glass in your own life and that you can deliberately concentrate the energy you receive from the world on one sheet at a time. When you do this, you will ignite incredible “flames” that will advance your projects, your dreams, your relationships, and even the world around you. (Angel and I discuss this in more detail in the “Goals and Success” chapter of 1,000 little things that make happy, successful people different.)
It’s your turn…
Please leave a comment below and let us know:
What will you focus on next after closing the window for this post?
