Laser Focus

What does it mean to have laser focus? Laser focus is having the ability to give all of your attention to whatever task you have prioritized in the present moment. In all of history, there may never have been a time when we are more distracted.

We have more distractions screaming for our attention than ever before. More media, more screens, and more apps than ever. And while more choices can be fun and interesting they can often lead to decision fatigue or analysis paralysis in your business. This paralysis is a consequence of too much choice or too much to focus on.

There are a few things that you can do to help you stay focused on what is the most important task at hand to move your business to the next level. 

Stop multitasking

You are probably multitasking right now. You might have the tv on in the background, multiple web pages or your email open, or someone at work talking to you. There is always something pulling at your attention.

Imagine being totally focused on one thing at a time. Being a “one-tasker”. As Marcel Schwantes says in one of his Inc. articles “research says multitasking it’s a myth and can damage our brains. You end up splitting your focus over many tasks, losing focus, lowering the quality of your work, and taking longer to hit your goals.” (https://www.inc.com/marcel-schwantes/first-90-days-steve-jobs-advice-on-the-only-4-times-you-should-say-no.html)

It's commonly believed that multitasking is a good thing, that it's a skill worth having. It’s something we spout as being one of our best qualities in an interview. But recent research has shown that this isn't the case. In fact, multitasking can actually be detrimental to your productivity. When you try to do too many things at once, you end up doing all of them poorly.

So next time you're trying to get some work done, turn off all distractions and focus on one task at a time. Being singularly focused will allow you to have laser focus on what is most important for moving your business forward.

Prioritize

What is the primary thing you want to achieve? Is it developing a new product? Is it business growth? Developing a go-to-market strategy? What is the one thing you want to achieve in the next 2, 6 or 12 months? Once you distinguish this, you can set up actionable SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) goals. This will help you take your priorities from ideas to action.

1: Choose one of your ideas to work on

2: Break it down into smaller steps

3: Make a plan to complete each step

4: Take action on your plan

5: Track your progress and revise your plan as needed.

This goal-setting method is effective because it is designed to be realistic. Achievable goals are more likely to be accomplished than impossible ones. This approach is also quantifiable so that you can track your progress. By setting measurable goals, you can better gauge your success.

Write down your goals

Grant Cardone says “If you’re not writing down your goals every day, you don’t have a goal, you have a wish.” It’s really easy to be distracted by menial, easy, mundane things. Make sure goals are meaningful! Create gigantic goals that can change your life. Then you will stay focused on them. 

Start by writing down your primary goal, and then create a list of smaller goals that support it. Once you have your list of smaller goals, take some time to think about what you need to do to achieve each one. What steps do you need to take? Who do you need to talk to? What resources do you need?

Once you have a plan for each goal, it's time to start taking action. But before you start taking action, it's important to get into the right mindset. To do this, take a few moments to visualize yourself achieving your goal. See yourself taking the necessary steps and reaching your destination. This will help to keep you motivated and focused on your goal.

Cardone also says to have laser focus, set daily targets. “A lot of people think these daily targets are goals, which is probably why they don’t get too far. The two are different. DAILY TARGETS ARE TASKS YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE THAT DAY. Targets are the steps toward the goal. Hit those, and you’ll move forward with focus.” (https://gctv.com/maintain-laser-focus/) Having daily targets has helped me stay motivated throughout my day making it that much easier to reach my gigantic goals. 

“If you’re not writing down your goals every day, you don’t have a goal, you have a wish.”

Thoughts?

Brilliantly is a growth firm of interim and fractional CGOs positioning #InsureTech and #FinTech startups for A-Round by increasing top-line revenues and driving bottom-line efficiencies. You can find out more about Brilliantly or on the web at https://brilliantlysaas.com/