Focus is the lost art of the 21st century.
Most entrepreneurs can’t discern the noise from the signal anymore.
They jump from one business model to another.
They change their niche every month.
They are drowning in information but starving for focus.
In the age of digital abundance in which we live, there are just too many shiny objects fighting for our attention.
As an entrepreneur, you typically have a sixth sense for spotting new opportunities.
While this is a great skill, it can work against you in a world that seems to overwhelm you with possibilities and information.
Opportunities like AI, SAAS, personal brands, new online business models like micro education, and communities to name a few.
They all look exciting to try, but should you?
This is the real question we have to ask ourselves.
A common pattern among very successful people seems to be saying no. But how can you discern what to say yes to and what to say no to in your business?
Self-Awareness
The root cause of most problems in business is a lack of awareness.
It’s easy to get lost in the daily grind.
Grinding and hustling often give us the illusion of making progress in our business. But are we?
Reflect on your goals. Are they still the things that you really want to achieve?
Revenue goals are important but if there is no deeper reason behind it, you’ll lose your focus once things get hard.
Most entrepreneurs don’t set goals that are truly theirs. Their intentions are merely a reflection of the lifestyle of the people they look up to.
Unplug from the world for a moment and ask yourself, “What is worth focusing on in my business?”
You’ll be surprised by the answers you come up with when you shut down all the noise and think for yourself.
Reviewing my goals on a regular basis has been a key practice in staying focused on what matters.
Facing Reality/ Radical Honesty
If you’ve lost your focus on your goals, it’s time to take a snapshot of your current situation.
The less we hide from reality, the higher our chances of getting the things we want.
This exercise has been one of the best I’ve done for my focus.
Take a sheet of paper or create a simple Google sheet.
Track for a week every single thing you do in 30-minute increments.
Look at every activity without sugar-coating.
Which activities are increasing your chances of success?
Place these on the right side of a column.
Which activities are decreasing your chances of success?
Place these on the left side of a column.
Once you overcome the initial discomfort of realizing how much time you waste every day, your eyes will be opened to what is possible.
In a world that is increasingly becoming faster and more complex, the more objective data you have on yourself, the bigger your advantage in business and life.
In an increasingly fast and complex world, the more objective data you have on yourself, the greater your advantage in life and business.
Most entrepreneurs work hard but at the end of the day they hey ask themselves, “What did I do today?”
I found that objectivity and radical honesty help a lot.
First Principles Thinking
A powerful and rational way to identify what to focus on is thinking in first principles.
What is first principles thinking?
First principles thinking is the process of breaking down problems into their most fundamental parts. You do this by questioning all assumptions to get to the truth. From there you come up with a solution.
If it sounds complicated, let’s run through a real-world example in a typical online coaching business.
Problem:
I want more clients.
Question assumptions:
You might assume that using YouTube Ads is the best way to get coaching clients because you see other coaches getting success with it. But is it?
Identify fundamental principles:
Acquiring clients fundamentally comes down to letting them know that you exist and that you can solve their problems.
Potential new solutions:
Post helpful content on Instagram to attract your ideal clients.
Show them through a free strategy call that you can solve their problems.
Implementation:
Attract your ideal clients by posting 5x Instagram reels a week with helpful content.
Reach out to your ideal prospects in the DM’s and offer them a free strategy call to solve their problems.
If they are a good fit, make them an offer and close the deal.
This was a simplified scenario of how you could implement first principles thinking in your business.
When you’re clear on what you should focus on, making progress becomes much easier.
The biggest bottleneck for the modern entrepreneur is not a lack of focus, confidence, or business strategy; it’s a lack of clarity.
Surely, focus is one of the most valuable skills of the 21st century, but focus is a byproduct of clarity.
The foundation of progress and fulfilment is clarity.
Clarity on exactly what you want in life and business.
Clarity on who you are, your purpose, mission, and vision.
Few entrepreneurs are in a state of having full clarity and direction in life.
But what if you could be in that state?
How much would it impact your life?
In case you’ve missed it, last week I wrote an in-depth guide on how to know exactly what you want in life. I trust that you will find great value in it. You can read it online on my blog. (Insert Blogpost when it goes live)
See you next week.
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PS:
If you’re an entrepreneur who is making at least 10k/month and you want to scale to 30k -100k/month and you know that your mindset is the main thing preventing you from scaling, then apply for a free strategy session with me to see how I can help you scale (valued at $500)
