I was recently reminded of what focus is all about. It’s about one thing.
One. Thing.
Not two things, not ten things, not fifteen different OKR’s that lead to a multi-faceted strategy played out over the next several quarters (or years).
It’s picking one thing that forces you to say no to everything else. That means saying no to really good things, even “insanely great” things.
Focus is about saying no. Over and over again.
And it pisses people off. Because we all want to hear yes.
But we live in a world where we hear yes too often. Everyone and everything is trying to seduce us into a yes.
We need to say no enough times that we can protect the one thing worth saying yes to.
Why only one thing? Can’t focus be more than that?
Nope. It can’t. The entire world needs to disappear while you focus on that one thing.
For example, when I go deer hunting I use a rifle or a bow. Both have some form of sights. On the rifle I look through a scope and I have to line up the crosshairs on the shoulder of the deer to make a clean shot. I can’t try and look at the deer and also the squirrel jumping in the tree next to me. I will miss the shot.
When I’ve got a deer in my sights, it gets my total focus. Nothing else in the world exists for that brief moment. After that moment, my focus is free to change to something else.
The benefits of focus all come down to the act of focusing. (Which is really stinking obvious!)
All the rewards are in doing the thing!
But I digress. To focus you must know what you want, and then pour as much of your attention and energy into what you want. And then defend your attention and energy by saying no until you are done.
This might sound basic, but I’ve worked with many intelligent, hard-working people who don’t seem to get it. When I was doing coaching I learned that most people don’t know what they want (or are afraid to say it out loud).
It’s impossible to focus if you don’t have clarity about what you want.
At the same time, when you know what you want, focus is easy. It’s the most natural thing in the world.
It boils down to this…
Focus is what happens when you want something so much that you are willing to move heaven and earth to get it. Everything else is wishful thinking.
That might sound harsh, but there you go.
-Brian