What Is Your Focus?

"One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus; we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular." -Tony Robbins

There are weeks and days in which I simply need to focus harder on the manuscript for a new book I am writing. Finding that focus can be difficult but when I do it certainly pays off in what I can get done.

As it is said, "Amazing things happen when you put your mind to it."

There were many things I had to simply let go and allow to wait while I worked ten to twelve hour days researching, writing, researching and writing some more. Quite a bit of the book had already been formulated in my mind, but it takes checking of facts, reading other opinions or authors to get a good handle on my own thoughts.

A lot can be learned in a focused process.

Your life can accomplish many things as well if you take the time to focus. Directing your attention to the goal, desire or vision will take you much further than simply coming up with a lot of different ideas.

Ideas are good, but they are only pieces of paper scattered about your desk.

You need to choose one idea and direct your energy to completing it. When you do that, surprise yourself with how far you will take yourself. Be surprised at how high you will take yourself. Surprise yourself in achieving.

Stay inspired my friends!

Seeing The Bigger Picture

“When science finally locates the center of the universe, some people will be surprised to learn they're not it.” - Bernard Bailey

Many of us have seen these pictures showing the relative size of the planets in our solar system. The pictures are an amazing view of how we and our earth fit into the larger solar system.


As you begin to step back from your own small space here on earth, you begin to see how much larger the picture is.


If we look to our own Sun, it is amazing to see how small earth is relative to an even bigger picture.


Our Sun becomes small when compared to other places within the universe. Stepping back further, it becomes obvious there are other things much larger than our own existence.

So large it becomes difficult to wrap our minds around the enormity of it.

If we step back and view the bigger picture around us, there are so many others and so much more we can do. But we have to step out of a self-centered way of thinking. All of this does not mean to say we are small and insignificant. What it means is there is a world, a life, much larger than our own.

Look outside of oneself and find something even greater.

When we reach out beyond our own small self, everything thing will start to come into focus. Life will become more clear when we expand our world, but it all starts with seeing the bigger picture.

Stay inspired my friends!

Sweating Stuff

“True happiness comes not when we get rid of all of our problems,but when we change our relationship to them, when we see our problems as a potential source of awakening, opportunities to practice, and to learn.” ― Richard Carlson

The universe is so large and we are a very small part in it. This does not mean you are unimportant in life. It means that you always need to put your problems into perspective.

Separate the large ones from the small ones.

Let the small problems go, for in the bigger scheme of your life, they really do not matter.

The large ones can now be more clearly seen and dealt with.

Focus on the big picture and as it is said, "try not to sweat the small stuff". Even though it is a very large universe, your life is important within the confines of our own sphere of influence. See the big picture and let your life grow even bigger.

Stay inspired my friends!

Clarity of Vision

Flint Castle, North Wales

"Clarity affords focus." -Thomas Leonard

Joseph Mallord William Turner, was born in Covent Garden, London on April 23, 1775 and died December 19, 1851. Turner was an English Romantic landscape artist, whose style is said to have laid the foundation for Impressionism.

It is in this painting I see the sun coming up on a new day. The ships are not quite ready to set sail because not all is in focus just yet.

Your dreams or visions are just that, dreams and visions that are not yet in focus.

Now is the time to start wiping the sleep from your eyes and finding clarity. By stepping forward, by beginning your movement forward, the picture will start to become more clear. It will gain clarity and allow you to set sail.

Stay inspired my friends.

Connected Clarity

"I think people are isolated because of the nature of human consciousness, and they like it when they feel the connection between themselves and someone else.." ~James Taylor

While I am on the road, filled with business travel, business meetings and business meals, the days start to become a blur. The days are busy, filled with much to do. Many times I have to stop and refocus in order to regain clarity back into my world.

When I begin to focus, clarity is what begins to happen. There is no better way to bring things into focus then by connecting with others. As an example, while on the plane, looking out the window, the details of everything disappear as we rise higher and higher. When we reach a cruising altitude of 35,000 feet, one can see the huge expanses of the earth. It spreads out in a wondrous view.

What I also notice is that the buildings, the people, the cars and the small details disappear. From such a high location, there is no ability to focus on those small details. The people, the cars and buildings are impossible to see. It reminded me that if we remove ourselves from connection with people, we lose that same ability to focus on things. We have no relationships to others around us. We might as well be 35,000 feet in the air.

When the plane begins its descent near the end of the flight, little things begin to reappear. The shapes of buildings became more clear. One can see vehicles racing up and down various roads. I can more clearly focus on all of those details as we drew closer to them. The more we descended, the tighter connection we had to everything around us.

Connection can only take place when we draw closer to others. When we involve ourselves in relationships with other people, the focus of our lives achieves much greater clarity. With this new found clarity, your ability to impact the lives of others becomes so much greater. The ability of others to impact your life becomes greater.

Do not isolate yourself at 35,000 feet. You may feel you can see so much further, but in reality you only see a non-detailed landscape of your life. Draw closer to others by connecting in various ways. Achieve focus through these connections and you will gain a better life.

Stay inspired my friends.

TGIF

"We can always choose to perceive things differently. You can focus on what's wrong in your life, or you can focus on what's right." -Marianne Williamson

Today is Friday, the last day of what is normally the work week. I know there are many that have other schedules and rotating days, but traditionally Friday is the end of the work week. The thoughts are beginning to boil up towards a cheer of T.G.I.F.

Everyone is laser focused on the weekend. Not surprisingly Friday was found to be the least productive. Tuesday came in as the most productive work day according to an old survey by Menlo Park-based Accountemps. Then again, someone got paid to conduct a survey to verify what all of us pretty much knew already.

What interests me is the focus we can attain if it is something we really want. Think about it, unlikely is your focus on hoping Monday comes quickly so that you can get back to work. Your focus is on enjoying your family, friends and relaxing through the weekend.

Also think back to when you first fell in love. You had a huge focus on the person of your desires. That lovely person that has such a wonderful smile who lights up the room when they enter. You had such a clear focus on what you wanted in life.

Then life steps in and clouds your vision, makes changes that distract you from all that is important. So we fall into the "9 to 5" mentality and shorten or focus to only Friday and the weekend.

What if we were able to refocus on longer term goals? What if we used that focus to pursue our dreams, our goals and visions? You know it exists out there just beyond the coming weekend.

All you need to do is direct your focus on what is important for your life. Share your focus with others and together we can turn T.G.I.F from "Thank God its Friday" into "Thank God I'm Focusing."

Is The Sky Falling

Sky Is Falling by Christian Mcleod

"If you can't sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there and worrying. It's the worry that gets you, not the loss of sleep." -Dale Carnegie

Things are tough out there are possibly getting worse. As American taxpayers, we are now part owners of million dollar homes, shopping malls, investment firms and we are also in the insurance business. All of this is due to the recent government bailout of many firms, all in the name of saving the American economy.

I understand that I am getting a bit judgemental about things here. I am just a frustrated taxpayer like many others. I could write and complain for many paragraphs, yet it wouldn't accomplish much other then making me feel slightly better.

What I can do is offer some tips that I collected to help you possibly ride through this cyclical thing we call the economy.

No. 1: Do not panic. The sky is not falling and yes, there will be people that get hit hard as many have already. But to panic will not do you any good. Sit back, stay calm and start thinking of ways to find your way to the other side of this.

No. 2: Prepare for adversity. We don't say this enough, early enough to our kids and to ourselves, save, save, save. By establishing emergency savings and preparing for these times will soften the blow. Now that we are in a downturn doesn't mean to stop saving, keep saving if even in smaller increments.

No. 3: Tighten your spending. Go over your personal spending with a fine-toothed comb and look for areas to cut back, such as dining out and entertainment. Put big-ticket purchases on hold. Downscale or delay vacation plans. Look for bargains and shop for the best deals.

Even though the economy rides on the shoulders of consumer spending, people must contain their expenditures during a slowdown. Otherwise they are at risk for personal financial crisis, experts said. "Overall, more consumer spending is obviously a boost to the economy, but at the individual household level, more spending may not be the prescription for your financial ills."

No. 4: Proceed with caution. You need to continue to spend and invest, but be more cautious, especially if you fear that your job or your company may be at risk. Life requires living and to live we do need to spend some amount of money. But evaluate your your job or industry. If either seem tenuous, you should be more conservative about your spending until the economy strengthens.

No. 5: Plastic Diet. The credit-card rates continue to soar reaching into the 20 percent range. Cut down usage or pay it off; it's like earning double-digit returns on your money by cutting out credit card debt. Easier said then done, families in shaky financial condition or uncertain employment may have to make a difficult choice. If your earning are steady and secure, then continue to whittle away at the credit-card debt. For those people with unstable incomes or a chance of being laid off, it's better to beef up emergency savings. Just know that those interest charges will build, so curtail credit-card spending to limit the growth of those credit charges.

No. 6: Manage your credit smartly. Check your credit report routinely and keep your credit score high so you can get favorable interest rates if you need to obtain financing. Pay bills on time, even if it is just the minimum required. Don't open a lot of new credit-card accounts. Don't respond to repeated "special offers" for credit cards in the mail or online. Resist the temptation to get discounts at retailers by opening an in-store account.

No. 7: Think fuel efficiency. Consider buying a more fuel-efficient car. Just remember, though, that spending on gasoline is a small part of the budget for most people, about 5 percent, and trimming your gas mileage likely won't make a huge difference in your budget's bottom line. If you take on a higher auto payment, you might even end up with less discretionary income at the end of the month.

So there it is, seven tips and by reading, I am positive you will find more great advice out there. I'm no financial expert, but want to ensure each of you have an idea of what can be done. Keep your focus, keep your attitude, keep your sanity and you will get through this.

Many have before us; Wall Street Collapse of 1929, the "dot-com" bust of the late 1990's and many others have shown that by staying calm and sensible, you will survive. I fully understand it doesn't seem that way when you are going through it. I was first married in 1980, with a child and the highest interest rates our economy had ever seen. I had thoughts that we would never make it through, but we did...so will you.

So those seven tips...the number seven that I've written about before. Take a few minutes, possibly seven, reflect and consider what you do have. It might be the most important seven minutes of your day.