Focusing on fewer things

Everyone I know who is above average at their craft shares a common trait of focusing on remarkably few things.?

In other words, they are really good at saying “no” to other commitments and saying “yes” to the one or two things they strive to be excellent at.

In his new book Slow Productivity, Cal Newport suggests that we can achieve greater focus and progress on the things that matter to us by striving to limiting our work across three scales: missions, projects, and daily goals.?

1. Missions, defined as ‘any ongoing goal or service that directs your professional life’.?
2. Projects, defined as ‘work-related [initiatives designed to advance your mission] that cannot be completed in a single session’
3. Daily goals, defined as ‘projects you decide to make progress on during the current day.’?

In the same way too many cars on the road invariably leads to traffic jams and delayed commutes, having too many commitments on any of these three scales invariably reduces your ability to make meaningful progress.?

There are countless productivity systems out there designed to help us wrangle our increasingly busy, over-committed lives. However very few of these ‘solutions’, if any, are as effective at radically creating space for progress and for us to breathe as the resolution to focus on fewer things.?

The Daily Spark exists for two reasons:

1. To document one idea every day that I've found helpful in my life.
2. To inspire you to discover what matters most and to take action towards it.

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About me:

I'm a second-generation Taiwanese American trying to find life’s greatest sources of meaning and make the most out of it.