“What we choose to focus on and what we choose to ignore—plays in defining the quality of our life.”
– Cal Newport
Narrowing our focus means we have to give attention to a select few areas of our lives, at the expense of others.
We identify the handful of things that mean most to us (relationships with loved ones, our health, our work, self-improvement, contribution) and we prioritise them. We let some other stuff go, or set very clear boundaries around when we will get to it.
In our lives, it means we make time for those that matter most to us. We make this quality time, we turn up present and fully invested. We listen, we share, we love, we contribute.
We also make time for ourselves, our passion projects and hobbies. We invest in our physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. We challenge ourselves, and seek to develop, but we are also kind to ourselves. We appreciate that to go fast, we also need to make space for slow. We embrace the process without obsessing on the end goal.
In our working space, we identify the areas where we can offer our best point of contribution and we focus on those areas. Less time in inboxes and meetings that go nowhere, so we can focus on the work that matters most. More time to plan, strategize or create.
Choosing to Chase Less
We can leverage the power of positive constraints to chase less but focus more.
Take on less but get more done.
Dig deeper rather than spreading ourselves ever wider.
Do less but do it better.
We can schedule our days and our lives for success.
The result may be that we get more back than we ever thought possible. Personally and professionally, we can approach a point of our highest contribution. We may find that doing less, but doing it better, sets us free to be the best versions of ourselves.
**Note: This is a riff off a post I contributed to Tiny Buddha