It's Tuesday at 2:00pm! (PST Time: I live and work from Southern California)
Greetings to you!
Each week I send out a short leadership blog that's called "Tuesday at 2:00pm". The purpose of this is simply to provide a brief thought on leadership that you can read and think about in just a few minutes. I send it out every week at 2:00pm (PST) and encourage you to make an appointment with yourself to pause and think about the thing I'm writing about.
Many of you know that I live and work in Southern California. This week we have been hit with major wildfires and we have many friends and connections who have been affected. Our prayers go out to these people and to first responders who are actively fighting the fires and responding to the needs. We are prayerfully looking for ways to get involved in the response here in our own backyard and will let you know what that looks like in coming weeks. Thank you.
Russ...
LEADERSHIP QUOTE:
"The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus." Bruce Lee
What does this stir up? Either write me HERE or comment at the end of the blog post HERE.
A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:
We're talking about FOCUS this month.
I woke up this morning, saw this quote from Bruce Lee, and found it to be a a great challenge for today and all the tasks I have in front of me, but it's also a great reminder that being focused will help me navigate the chaos and the lists of things I have before me today.
I don't know what your day looks like today, but I'm having to make constant decisions about what I'm going to allocate time and energy towards. I realize that it's not just a "busy season", but this is my life!
There is really good stuff to get done, and I have to manage my life to the best of my abilities in order to get it all done!
FOCUS.
The definition of focus is simple:
"A point of concentration; directed attention; emphasis"
I want to encourage you today to spend some time thinking about what optimal focus looks like In your life. Maybe start by answering these questions:
When I feel fully focused, it makes me feel.......
When I struggle with distraction, I can re-focus by......
When others thing I'm not focused, my typical response is....
I've found that being FOCUSED is a really personal thing and it looks different for everyone.
What do you see other people do that helps them focus better?
DEEPER STILL:
The best way to FOCUS is to clearly understand the distractions in your life that ALWAYS distract you.
I've got some things that I tend to fall prey too....
A Classic Movie... I can be tired and ready for bed or I can be ready to work on a project, and if I see a classic movie on TV, it sucks me in.... Gladiator, Braveheart, anything with Jason Bourne or even Sabrina. I'm a sucker for a great film, and I'll watch it from any point in the movie.
Family... It usually doesn't matter what's going on, but if I have the opportunity to talk with my family, or hang-out, or if they stop by, I tend to want to throw things aside and be with them. Sometimes I don't, but most of the time, Family trumps just about everything else.
Crazy Ideas... I like to dream and think about new things, and sometimes I just get lost in an idea and it takes over everything until I'm able to act on it or kill it! I'm often impulsive and it gets me in trouble with my time.
Technology... I get excited about new technology, whether it be an app or a product, and sometimes I spend time learning new things when I haven't mastered the old things.
Here's what I want to say. None of these things are bad, they are just things that I know can pull me away from something I've decided to focus on.
I can't ignore them, well, I can try to ignore them, but I'd rather learn to manage them.
It's OK to watch a classic movie... just not at the expense of something that is more important at the time!
It's WONDERFUL to connect with family... but there need to be times that I'm not available in order to focus. I just need to communicate this better.
It's GREAT to chase crazy ideas... but I need to be able to evaluate it before it consumes my life and energy.
I LOVE technology... and sometimes the new tools do help me, but I need to create some limits and boundaries.
I could go on and on, but you get the idea.
How have you learned to manage the things that can become a distraction at time, even though they are good things?
Things I'm Reading, Listening To and Watching This Week:
The Michael Hyatt Company is now called FULL FOCUS. Check this out for some great tools and help with thisi whole idea of focus.
Cal Newports book, Deep Work "Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World". Great read!
We recently enjoyed this comedy special on Netflix: Your Friend, Nate Bargatze
Do you remember Leo Sayer? Check out some of his great songs on his Essentials Album.
One of the regular podcasts I listen to is called The Best Idea Yet. I enjoyed this episode on the LEGO Company.