Focus: A Beginner's Guide

I never feel like I spend enough time focusing. I have come to realize that that is normal. Most people feel that way. Like money, the number of hours you spend focusing is never enough. Then why focus? You don't focus because of the feeling it gives you. Instead, you should be focusing because you are "run[ing] in such a way as to get the prize" (1 Cor. 9:24b). It is important to clearly define what your prize is. This is what I want to accomplish with the limited time I have on earth: I want enough resources to give my future children the chance to accomplish amazing things, enough time to nurture a deep, loving relationship with my future wife, and enough money to give generously. If I die, and I have half-way accomplished even one of these goals, I think I will be able to die with very little regret.

But I have diverged, which is rather ironic considering the topic of today's post. Now that we have a prize in mind, let's get back to focus. A great analogy for focus is running. In ancient times, Greek runners would strip off all their clothes so that they would have nothing restricting their movement. Now, please note that if you are having trouble focusing on your French vocab, I am not advocating to continue your work in the nude, parce que ?a c'est répugnant. But it is a good mental model. When you are working, remove anything that is getting in your way, and you will have much more success.

What are some tangible examples of this? If your phone is buzzing and snatching you out of the zone, power it off and put it under your bed until you have finished your task. The bed itself is playing the role of a siren perched upon the cliffs of Anthemusa, head to a coffee shop where peer pressure will force you to get your work done. The point is to remove everything from your life that is slowing you down as you labour towards the prize.

Pip pip,

Gabe