How to Focus

Do you Focus on... The past? The present? The future?

The truth is, we don’t actually see the world as it is, but as we are.

What this means is, our experience of events is always a reflection and outcome of our emotions and feeling state.

The Meaning you assign to everything in your life defines your life. The words you commonly use to describe your present, past and future constantly create and reinforce the reality you live in. If you portray yourself as a helpless victim, a habitual loser, or even just as unlucky, you’ll be just that. Your Focus will direct you toward situations and choices that will make this Meaning true — and you will take action and make decisions to ensure only negative things happen!

However, if you cast yourself as the powerful master of your destiny, you’ll become that too. Although we can’t change or rewrite our personal biographies, we can rewrite the stories we tell ourselves and greatly expand what’s possible and likely for our futures.

To achieve anything, you first think of the future, you must envision it, you must plan it, and then you must go after it. To enjoy things, you have to come to this moment – the present. The past is just a collection experiences to learn from, and perhaps, sometimes, you will enjoy fond memories and recollections.

The Truth:

Be honest with yourself - where is your focus? Learn the key characteristics of people with each of the following focuses:

Future Focus People

Future-focused people are driven by goals.
They make decisions based on the anticipation of future consequences using if-then reasoning. They are notprone to taking risks.
They are able to avoid temptations and distractions that are perceived as short-term fulfillment or time wasting.
The future-oriented person is unable to enjoy present, transient, leisurely activities and experiences.

Present Focus People

Seek immediate gratification while ignoring or minimizing the abstract qualities that exist in an anticipated future context or a remembered past context.
They give in easily to temptation.
They enjoy all things that bring immediate pleasure and avoid things that involve much effort, work, planning, or unpleasantness.
They tend to be narrowly focused on what is rather than what might be, or used to be.
Present-focused people tend to be more self-indulgent and playful.

Past Focus People

They are able to distance themselves from the reality of the immediate and instead focus on their obligations.
These people tend to be conservative and concerned over maintaining the status quo, whether it is really good or bad for them.
They are not impressed by new, different, more efficient ways of doing things – they are suspicious of and fear them.
Rituals and myths play important roles in their lives as do traditional or fundamental values.
They do not take risks and are not adventurous.

Understand the seasons of life

No matter what lens (past, present or future) you view life through it is important to recognize the natural ebbs and flows of life. When experiencing a high or a low, just remember that nothing is permanent – because winter or spring or summer or fall is just right around the corner. By learning the seasons of life, you can prepare for and gauge where you are at present as well as anticipate where you’re likely headed in the future. It is important to note that these personal seasons do not have to correlate to the physical seasons, it’s more about what time of your life they symbolize.

Spring

Things are born and they begin to grow.

Summer

Things continue to grow and mature.

Fall

Things reach their peak and begin to transform and slowly fall.

Winter

Things begin to sleep or pass on. Their passing makes the next spring possible.

Understanding the seasons is the first step, but the key is in the application. What happens if you plant seeds in the winter? You don’t reap the benefits. The principle is simple – you must do the right thing at the right time. If you do the wrong thing at the wrong time you will not be rewarded. Master this and you will learn to thrive in any season.

FOCUS on creating a life you deserve and desire

Quality questions create a quality life. They direct our mental focus and therefore determine how we think and feel. The key is to develop a pattern of questions that empower you.

The following questions are designed to help direct you focus and help you experience more happiness, excitement, pride, gratitude, joy, commitment and love every day of your life.

What am I most happy about in my life now?What about that makes me happy? How does that make me feel?
What am I most excited about in my life now?What about that makes me excited? How does that make me feel?
What am I most proud about in my life now?What about that makes me proud? How does that make me feel?
What am I most grateful about in my life now?What about that makes me grateful? How does that make me feel?
What am I enjoying most in my life right now?What about that do I enjoy? How does that make me feel?
What am I committed to in my life right now? What about that makes me committed? How does that make me feel?
Who do I love? Who loves me?What about that makes me loving? How does that make me feel?

If you really want to create a shift in your life, make this a part of your daily ritual. By consistently asking these questions, you’ll find that you access your most empowering emotional states on a regular basis, and you’ll begin to create mental highways to happiness, excitement, pride, gratitude, joy, commitment and love.