Focus is defined as full concentration of attention or energy on something.
I recently read the book “The One Thing” by Gary Keller. The basic premise of the book revolves around the idea that there is one thing we can do to take our business or career to the next level. The book addresses multitasking. Here are a couple of ideas from the book:
- There is just so much brain capability at any one time. Divide it up as much as you want, but you’ll pay a price in time and effectiveness. You simply can’t effectively focus on two important things at one time.
- The 2009 New York Times article “Driven to Distraction” by Matt Richtel states,“16 percent of all traffic fatalities and nearly half a million injuries annually are caused by texting and cell phone use while driving.”
- Researchers estimate we lose 28 percent of an average workday to multitasking ineffectiveness.
Recently, I paid the price for multitasking. While working with one of the top agents in the country and an international client, I failed to forward an important email. As I replayed the incident in my mind, I realized I was not fully focused on the task at hand. I was multitasking. As a result, it caused stress and hardship on all parties involved.
I have decided to use this as a learning experience. Now, when I sit down to read my emails, I turn my phone off and close the door to my office. I, like many of you, have people who depend on me to do effective work. We all expect pilots and surgeons to focus on their jobs to the exclusion of everything else, yet many of us are living another standard. Why would we ever tolerate multitasking when we are doing our most important work?
I’m constantly amazed how fast Party On The Moon® can learn a new song when the band is focused. As part of my black belt test in karate, I had to do board breaking. I had to be fully focused on the task at hand. Focus creates energy, and we can use that energy to create what we care about.
I love technology. It allows us to access information and communicate with others around the world. The downside is that we can get easily distracted and lose focus, which makes it harder to create what we care about.
Poet Billy Collins says it this way, “We call it multitasking, which makes it sound like an ability to do lots of things at the same time… A Buddhist would call this monkey mind. We think we’re mastering multitasking, but we’re just driving ourselves bananas.”
Here’s to focus.
Dennis
