“That’s been one of my mantras—focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”
Steve Jobs
Beyond the Quote (41/365) Part 1: On Focus
The ability to focus, or more clearly stated, the ability to block out distractions—especially in today’s world—is absolutely critical in producing the best work of your life. Think about it. Distractions are the things that take your attention elsewhere—away from what it should be/ could be doing. And when your attention is over there, it’s certainly not over here—focused on the deep, thoughtful work that requires long chains of uninterrupted time for thought, flow, play, introspection, and execution. And the more that your attention ends up over there in distraction, either deliberately or unexpectedly, the work you could be doing over here gets sidetracked and lost.
Bringing to light the best of what you have to offer requires digging—a lot of digging. And the catch with this type of digging is that every time you get distracted from your “dig,” you don’t get to pick up where you left off—you have to start from the surface again. And the same is true if you get distracted again–back to the surface. This is the battle we face every day. Our phones, TVs, computers, tablets, radios, friends, and family members are constantly FIGHTING us for our attention. And every time we respond to those distractions (unless it’s for deep reasons), we’re choosing to access the endless supply of superficial over the opportunity to dig deep and explore the endless depths of our being—and that’s a hefty price that we’re choosing to pay.
And that’s not even the scariest part. The reason that this battle against distraction is so hard, is that many of us actually like getting distracted, or more clearly stated, are being wired to like it. Social media is designed to show us what we want to see and hear about—so why wouldn’t we want log in? Advertisements specifically target us and are catered to our preferences so that we see things we actually want to see and might want to potentially buy—so why wouldn’t we listen and click through? We have endless ways of checking in on people we admire, care about, and want to hear from—so why wouldn’t we want to turn on notifications and alerts?
These distractions make us feel good—and there is an unlimited supply of distractions at our disposal. The problem is that the “feel good” these distractions provide is designed to be short lasting—after only a few minutes, the timelines completely change, the ads recycle, new posts are up, and new conversations are being had. And this is every few minutes! And we’re being wired to crave it, to fear missing out on it, and to keep liking the distractions more and more.
The reality is, many of us are losing the fight against distractions and we’re ALL paying for it. When you aren’t able to put out your best work, we aren’t able to enjoy the manifestations of your best work. We need your best work. The world needs your best work. We need more substance and depth. And if you’ve ever been deeply impacted by someone else’s deep work, don’t you think you at least owe it to them to pay it forward? The world is swimming with superficial and shallow.
This is the sacrifice we make for having rings, pings, buzzes, beeps, and just plain LOUD DISTRACTING NOISES around us all of the time. Don’t you think you could block out at least 20 – 60 minutes a day for deep, personal work? If not, are your priorities really in check? Free yourself from the rings, pings, buzzes, and beeps and do more of the work that challenges you to the core. Fight for that time and don’t let anyone change your mind about it. Remember, you’re not doing it just for you, you’re being stubborn for them, too.
This post became the introduction for: 25 Quotes On The Power of Focus and How Important Focus Is For Success
Read Next: Steve Jobs Quote on Simplicity and How Simple Can Be Harder Than Complex (Part 2)
Don't Let the Motivation Stop There...!
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