To help guide me throughout the year, I started the practice of choosing a word every year. A word that will bring more awareness to my intentions. Last year my word was “flourish”, which means to grow, thrive, and achieve success. My word for 2021 is “FOCUS”, which means the center of activity, attraction, or attention. Focus is important because I think it puts you on that path to all thinking (perception, memory, learning, reasoning, problem-solving, and decision making). Actually, I would have to throw in “mindful” as part of the definition. And, one thing I’ve learned is that if you can’t focus effectively, you can’t think effectively.
2020 was definitely a year of distractions for me. I found it hard to focus because of everything going on in my personal life and especially, in the world. I found myself having to constantly remember to be present, to live in the moment. This is not easy for me. My mind was/is always filled with my to-do list, the pandemic, our nation’s economy, how to keep myself and my family healthy and well, and on and on. So, I need to learn how to focus so that I can keep moving forward in my life.
To do this, the biggest thing for me is to limit distractions like social media and the news. It’s hard, but I can always catch up on what’s current later…right?! Also, while multitasking may be a great way to get a lot done, I find it cuts down on my productivity. I think it’s much harder to concentrate on the details that are truly important. So, it’s one task at a time for me. Another thing that might help me to focus more, is to take a short mental break from whatever I’m doing. Do something totally unrelated to the task, even if it’s only for a few minutes. Then when I go back to the task, I may find that my focus is sharper.
I know that building a sharper focus is not something that will happen overnight. Everything is a work in progress. But, what I do know is that being distracted is having an impact on my life, and I need to place more importance on my time. I am ready to start accomplishing more and concentrating on what’s really important to me and what brings me joy and success.
What is your word for this new year?
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