Primary Focus

Each and everyday our minds are constantly bombarded with thoughts of I need to change my eating habits, I need to be punctual, how do I fit my family time in, I need to start praying more…and the list goes on.

When the New Year comes around it gives us the opportunity to look at were we are and where we would like to be The only problem is which area do you work on first?

What is going to be your primary focus?

Many people are tempted to try to work on all of their personal issues at once however; this can be an overwhelming and negative experience. (Trust me I have tried.) Here is what I suggest, make a list of everything you feel like you need to work on. Then rate every area that you feel you need improvement from 1 to 10, 1 being the worst problem. After you list and rate the areas I suggest that you select one of your worst problems and make that issue your primary focus.

“Having a primary focus doesn’t mean ignoring every other area of your life. It means that within your area of primary focus, you set your most ambitious goals and intentions, and you devote significant time, energy, and resources to achieve them. In all other areas of your life, you’ll set more modest goals. And in some areas, you may just want to maintain the status quo. This is a resource allocation process. You’re transferring some of the slack from areas that are doing OK in order to rebalance the worst-performing area.

Since your time and resources are limited, it’s unrealistic to make significant progress in a certain area without a clear focus. You have to let some areas slide a bit in order to make a real dent in your growth. Think of this as intelligent slacking. These sacrifices can be tough to make, but looking back on your life with regret is a lot harder.

The main resource you’ll be committing to your primary focus is time. Whenever you change your primary focus, you must shift time from other areas to invest more time in this key area. This could mean working 60 hours a week instead of 40. It could mean exercising 10 hours a week instead of 0. It could mean meditating daily instead of just occasionally. That time has to come from somewhere, so whenever you make one area your priority, you automatically downgrade the other areas into posteriorities.

Keep in mind that having a primary focus is a temporary situation. Your primary focus for the upcoming year may not be the most important part of your life. In fact, it probably won’t be. In order to make an intelligent choice here, you have to consider the long-term impact of your decision. For example, you might be a very family oriented person who selects physical fitness as your primary focus for the year because you want more health and energy to devote to your family, you want to be there for them as you age gracefully, and you want to serve as a positive role model for your children.” *

But regardless of what you pick as your primary focus remember consistency is the key. You will never experience lasting results in business or life if you are always jumping from one project or issue to another without ever seeing something through to completion. Some things can only be conquered through time and the conquering of you is a life long commitment. Commit to yourself that you will remain faithful to your primary focus until that primary focus has reached the goal you had in mind and at the end of the year you will be amazed at the results. Good luck!

*“Setting your Primary Focus” December 31st, 2006 by Steve Pavlina