The Art of Focus

When You Cut Out What You Don’t Want to Do, It Isn’t Focus.

When you cut out something you really want to do, it is.

I’ve often heard the saying that as you grow, the opportunities to say "no" also grow. I thought I knew what that meant until recently when I realized how it really works.

Focus isn’t just staying on what you decided is important. It also means completely cutting out everything else.

Most entrepreneurs I talk to have chosen one business to focus on. (A few still think they can run multiple businesses at once before mastering one.)

But what they struggle with is their daily tasks, delegation, and choosing the right tasks for their team.

Even when they manage that, their thoughts keep jumping to other things. They haven’t fully realized what their most important task is.

As your skills grow as an entrepreneur, so do the opportunities. You see possibilities everywhere, meet people with more skills, and find yourself in rooms where bigger games are being played. You hear stories of how fast someone else built a business, and you start thinking you could make it work even better.

So, you get distracted. Not by skipping tasks, but by spending valuable time thinking about new ideas, projects, and possibilities.

It’s like being in a relationship but constantly thinking about other partners.

There’s nothing wrong with having these thoughts, but you get to choose how much you entertain them.

This is where focus comes in.

It feels good at the moment to dream about new ideas, but in reality, there are consequences to focusing on things outside your main relationship—your business. For someone who wants to build something big and lasting, those consequences aren’t positive for their goal.

I felt this in the last few weeks when I was presented with new ideas, networking chances, and business ventures.

They all looked great.

They all seemed worth doing.

They all felt good.

Letting go of them felt uncomfortable at the time.

But it’s the cost of building something great.

Nothing wrong with playing multiple games, but you won’t become a master at any.

You have limited attention.

There are endless possibilities.

You can only make so many things work.

The more you say "no" to, the more energy you have for what you really want to build.

So, the next time a shiny, great idea comes your way, ask yourself: Is the relationship you’re in with your business long-term?

If the answer is yes, there’s most likely much more to discover on the path you’re already on before branching out.

Focus, and know that the more you can say "no," the more energy you have for what you really want to build.