Importance of focus

Achieving focus in important but very challenging. [File photo]

I have made many mistakes in my 40-year career as an academic, lawyer and consultant and throughout my seven decades of life. Career wise, my biggest mistake was a failure to focus, to devote myself to the one thing that I could be the very best at.

Focus will indeed often trump natural talent for without focus one's potential is unlikely to be fully realized. The importance of "focus" is underscored in books like Michael Porter's classic "The Competitive Advantage of Nations" and in popular business literature such as Richard Koch's "The 80/20 Principle" and Gary Keller's "The One Thing."

Achieving focus is very challenging. Business gurus and career advisors tell young people to "find and follow your passion." However, one is not "born" with passion. It has to be learned and is a product of continual self-awareness, self-reflection and multiple attempts at trying different things to find out what you like and what you are good at and then focusing intensely in that area. As Alexander Graham Bell noted, "Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus."

Finding one's focus takes time

One of the reasons people give up and eventually fail in learning something new is that they lack focus and are trying to do too much too fast. This is one reason that most management strategies fail - they set unrealistic time frames and fail to bring people with them.

Individually, too, slow and accurate small steps at the beginning will enable one to make the most progress. For example, I have been teaching myself how to play the guitar. In that process, one of the most valuable lessons I have learned is that it is better to break the piece I am trying to play into smaller chunks and practice slowly, but accurately. Speed will come once my fingers have learned the song. If you play too fast and sloppy, all you end up doing is practicing to be sloppy.

It takes deliberate practice

Building on the previous point, practice must be deliberate. Whether you are learning new skills on a job, learning to play a musical instrument or master a new language, one has to give careful thought to how to use practice time. What should you work on? What activities will bring steady and maximum improvement? This often means breaking things into smaller chunks, focusing on accuracy and building up skill over time.

Progress is not constant or linear

Those who are focused also realize that progress is not constant or linear. There are times when you will appear to be making no progress at all, or even going backwards. Yet, if you persevere, you will eventually breakthrough to that next level.

It must become a habit

Focus is like a muscle - it grows and gets better with use. People who excel at any activity all seem to have cultivated a habit of intense focus when they are "in the zone" and "doing their thing."

Eight strategies for achieving focus

1. Make a checklist

One of the most powerful tools in achieving focus is to make a checklist. This is something I had forgotten for a number of years and have recently gone back to and it has made a great difference. If you want the evidence and inspiration for this, read "The Checklist Manifesto" by Atul Gawande.

2. Pay attention

It states the obvious, but a major reason many fail to achieve focus is that they never pay attention to begin with. For example, the major reason people do not remember names is that they never hear the name to begin with. When we pay attention and actually focus on the name and combine that with other strategies (creating a link to a picture we can see in our minds), then we can dramatically improve our recall of names.

3. Know when you are at your best

Focus is also best achieved when we organize ourselves to that we are working on one thing at a time. When I was a practicing lawyer in the U.S., I arranged with clients and managing partners to conduct my research and do my highest level of legal writing in blocks of time reserved for the mornings when my mind was clear and most alert. I then used afternoons for less intellectually demanding phone calls and other activities that required less in the way of mental calm, critical reflection and clear reasoning and writing.

The same goes for learning new habits. It is usually better to focus on learning/adopting one new habit at a time until it becomes part of your routine. Then, build on that habit to develop a whole set of good habits that will, over time, enable you to enhance your ability to focus.

4. We must not be distracted - no multi-tasking

Another reason people do not pay attention is that their attention is distracted or torn among many things. Neurologists tell us that people do not really multi-task. If you want to get something done and achieve focus, you have to reduce the amount of multi-tasking. Unfortunately people today are constantly distracted by email and text messages, social media (Facebook, WeChat, etc), computer games and much more. Each time we are interrupted, our focus and concentration is diminished and it takes considerable time to get back to where we were prior to the interruption. Reflection and quiet allow your imagination space to work its magic. As author Mark Twain observed: "You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus."

5. Break big tasks into smaller tasks and build in a break

Another strategy to achieve focus is breaking down large tasks into smaller chunks. Each chunk becomes a minor goal. When you set and achieve the smaller goals they will serve as stepping stones across bridging your way to achieving you major goal.

It also helps to take periodic breaks during which time our sub-conscious will continue to work towards a solution. Everyone, I suspect, has had the experience of not being able to remember something or solve a problem prior to going to sleep-only to wake up in the morning with the answer to your question.

6. Know yourself

Everyone is different. Some of us are night people; others early morning types. It is important to know yourself and what works best for you. Improving one's focus and efficiency of operation is a lifelong journey. Commit to constant improvement in all your learning capacities. Knowing yourself also means learning what you are most passionate about and trying, as far as possible, to channel your career into areas you feel passionate about. In other words, it is always easier to find focus if you do what you love and love what you do.

7. Control the environment

Be proactive in controlling your environment so that it enhances your ability to focus. Examples include:

• Check email only at designated times of day so that you are not constantly disrupted

• Make sure your desk and chair are appropriate and consider a standing desk

• Take a break to go for a short walk or do some simple exercise, even at your desk.

• Make sure you have sufficient light and ventilation.

• If noise is a problem, get some earplugs or headset to ensure quiet.

8. Pay attention to diet and sleep

Achieving focus is hard work. You need sufficient sleep and physical fitness so that you will perform at your best. As Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: "Health is the first wealth." Other useful habits are learning to focus on one's breathing and posture, for example, by taking up meditation or other related activity.

Eugene Clark is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/eugeneclark.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.