How To Improve Focus And Memory

Jon, our engineer from earlier, knew he needed to focus better. Continual interruptions were seriously affecting his ability to perform his job well, but he also realized that a distraction-free work environment was impossible and unrealistic. He thought about the kinds of distractions that affected his ability to focus on his design process, and on my advice, he kept a two-week Focus Journal. He quickly saw that every day, seemingly insignificant distractions really added up. He spent probably three to four cumulative hours a day being pulled in every conceivable direction except toward realizing his goal. As he reviewed his journal, he considered that some of these interruptions could probably be mitigated, others eliminated. But which ones? He knew he needed to change how he conducted his workday. But how to do it? "Change is hard!" he said. He wondered whether the effort would pay off.

 

As you approach the second rung on the Effectiveness Ladder, you now understand your need for focus. You understand that focus is jeopardized by distraction and that focus is an acquired skill. The next step is to clarify your need so you can make good choices about what you need to do about it. Remember, this is the rung on the ladder where you make a commitment to improve your ability to focus. It will not be simple or completely painless, and it will require a willingness to change the way you do some very basic things. Remember the discussion we had about voluntary change and the importance of willingness? A commitment to improve your ability to focus engages those principles.

 

When you complete the two-week Focus Journal mentioned earlier, you should have a clear picture of how well you currently focus. You will also be positioned to make an informed choice about your commitment to improvement.

 

To help you make the choice to improve your focus, simply return mentally to all the work you have done to achieve clarity about what you really want. Having that clarity will help you keep in view the priorities that will carry you to your strategic objectives. In contrast, without focus, your results will be limited, and the time it takes to achieve the results you seek will be significantly extended. What is the benefit of getting clear on what you want if you are unwilling to do the work it takes to attain it?

 

Remember, Strategic Life Planning is about getting superior results faster. The ability to focus is one of the critical success factors that help you do that, because focus has the effect of increasing time. It's not that you will actually have more time in your day. Each day has twenty-four hours, and that will not change. However, focus gives you the power to make better use of those hours, and if you can consistently increase what you accomplish as a result of improving your focus, the effect is like adding time to your day. Therefore, getting clear on your need to improve your ability to focus involves accepting that you might be allowing distractions to steal many minutes from every day.

 

When you complete your focus Journal, look at how many minutes each day you lost to distractions that barged into your mind and led you on unplanned activities. Specifically, take a closer look at the priorities you established for each day and the specific things you intended to finish each day. Make a list of the priorities and tasks that you did not complete on the day in question, and then subject each of them to a couple of tough questions – ask yourself:

• Why didn't I complete the work I had prioritized to complete each day?
• What happened that caused me not to complete them?
• Write down specific answers to these questions and evaluate those answers as distractions. Regardless of how legitimate they look, if they caused you to not finish what you planned to finish, they were a distraction and caused you to lose your focus.

 

You should now have enough information to be clear about your need to improve your ability to focus. Your Focus Journal will have exposed your focus challenge, and you should be able to make a good decision about making the commitment to improve your focus skills:

• Do you need to improve your focus skills?
• Do you see the value in improving those skills?
• Are you willing to do it?

 

If you answered yes, you are ready for Rung #3 on the Effectiveness Ladder. Before that, you can check out How To Improve Focus And Memory.

 

 

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