Focus and my ability to concentrate is in short supply. Uncertainty messes with my brain, but world events needn’t derail my desire to be productive. Easier said than done, right? Focus behaves like a muscle. The more I exercise it, the stronger and less painful concentrating becomes. The problem is starting.
When life gets stressful, I resort to Warren Buffett’s Two-List strategy. His directions say to create a detail list of 25 things I wish to accomplish. Long-term goals are proving too difficult to consider, so I fixate on this week. Completing the list is challenging, but I won’t be dissuaded. Eventually, my paper details a wide variety of tasks from housework, to writing posts.
With my twenty-five complied, I narrow the field to my five most important desires. Buffet says to set aside the remaining twenty, and he forbids dabbling with List 2 tasks until List 1 is done. On this Monday morning, even five things are overwhelming. I take Buffet’s instructions a step further and select one task. That means if I’m in desperate need of clean yoga pants, and it is on my leading five, laundry is my focus for today.
Sure, I still must fix lunch, and see to the normal day-to-day necessities, but I must do my wash before I allow myself to pick the next item from my list. But with a distracted mind, it may be my only success. And that’s okay. Tomorrow I promise to tackle another goal.
What will you accomplish today?
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Keep on writing.
Jo Hawk The Writer