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Looking for some focus?

Have you ever wanted to focus your mind, but you:

• Had such a crazy day, you can’t think straight?
• Had too much detail racing around in your head, that you lose focus?
• Felt so busy rushing from one task to another, but didn’t achieve your goals?
• Had lots of distractions and stray thoughts which knocked you ‘out of sync’?
• Felt you ‘couldn’t see the wood for the trees’?

Guess what, lots of people have; me included.

Have you ever sat down and thought ‘why is this happening’ or more to the point, how can you change this? Guess what, lots of people haven’t and they haven’t committed to making the change. That’s not because it’s impossible, it’s because it involves some discipline.

Well, when I say, ‘some discipline’ I actually mean taking just 5 minutes out of your day to reflect, recharge and refocus to regain your flow and feel in control of your journey. Or to use the ‘you can’t see the wood for the trees’ analogy, take 5 minutes to stop focusing on the trees, lift your head up to see the whole situation and remind yourself it’s a wood.

So, what does the 5 minutes focus involve?

First, you need to be clear on your overall goal, your bigger picture, your end point or to use the analogy, your ‘wood.’

Set yourself 5 minutes of ‘Time for You’ and find a quiet place with a comfy chair.

1st Minute Focus – Block out all distractions

If you’re anything like me this usually takes a minute to turn off my computer screen, turn down the volume, silence my phone and get comfy.

2nd Minute Focus  – Concentrate on your breathing and clear your mind away from the trees

For me, I focus on a saying my colleague used to say:

Breathe in peace; breathe out tension.

I also find the 1-moment meditation works really well.

3rd Minute Focus – Remind yourself of your ‘wood’

Now you’re feeling much calmer and have a more focused state of mind, step back and look at the whole situation. Think about what’s important about your ‘wood’ think about the benefits.

Think of 3 words to describe how your ‘wood’ makes you feel; both on your journey and on completion.

Think about how motivated and committed you are to your ‘wood’.

4th Minute Focus – Go back to your tasks for the day (the trees) and question if they belong in your ‘wood’

Maybe they’re part of someone else’s ‘wood.’

Identify 3 things you can do right now to help you on your journey, and more importantly contribute to your ‘wood?’

5th Minute Focus – Pay attention to the positive things in your life

Write down 3 good things that have happened to you today or 3 things that went well today; even better if they contributed to your ‘wood’

That’s it and it only took 5 minutes.

Extra tip: Being a visual kind of girl, I do this quick 5-minute exercise by visualising sunsets; either by looking at photos of sunsets I’ve experienced (like this one in Camber Sands) or visualising them in my mind. This helps me focus on my end point (my ‘wood’) and helps me to lift my head up away from the details (the ‘trees’) to reveal the bigger picture. I love sunsets. They make me feel calm. They make me smile and most importantly they help me focus my mind and get more in control.

So, over to you

• What’s your ‘wood’?
• Where’s your quiet place?
• What 3 words describe how your ‘wood’ makes you feel?
• What 3 things have you committed to achieve?
• What’s your visual to help you reflect, recharge and refocus to regain your flow and feel in control of your journey?
• What’s stopping you committing to 5 minutes?

Give yourself some ‘Time for You’ so you can reflect, recharge and refocus on your vision.

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