Will You Try This Easy Way to Increase Your Focus and Productivity?

Who isn’t busy, and don’t we all love ‘easy?’

Get out that darn To-Do list. How long is it? Three items? Four, eight, ten, or more?

We’re so ambitious, aren’t we? That’s not a bad thing. The trouble is it can be overwhelming at times.

Overwhelming can also lead to procrastination. Procrastination can lead to resistance — then nothing gets done.

I’ve been using this method to nail down what I want to accomplish in a day. I’ve also implemented it for long-term goals and undertakings.

"I don’t care how much power, brilliance or energy you have, if you don’t harness it and focus it on a specific target, and hold it there, you’re never going to accomplish as much as your ability warrants." — Zig Ziglar.

Here’s how you do it

You may think this process is a bit woo-woo. That’s okay. Woo-woo or not, it works.

Start by sitting, closing your eyes, and calming yourself. No eye-rolling here — this does work. Plus, it only takes five minutes, ten if you want to get into details.

Imagine your brain is like your computer dest top. You know — filled with a kajillion icons, tools, and folders.

You will temporarily clear your Mind/Dest Top of all that stuff. Dump it all into a folder and put it aside for now.

Next, focus on the most important priority and set the intention that it will get done today.

You should have three action steps (additional steps if it’s a more extensive project) that will get you there. Imagine yourself performing the tasks needed to accomplish this to-do item.

We cannot envision the job completed — we must visually walk through the steps we will take to complete the task.

Sample walk-through

I’ll use my example for today. My main objective was to write an article to publish on this blog.

1. I pictured myself entering my office, plopping my butt down in my chair, and firing up my laptop. I’ve situated myself with ice water and my “Shhhh” sign on my office door.

2. First up is deciding on a title. Once I have a working title, I’m ready to write. I stick with it until I’ve written at least a three-minute article. Often I must do some research on a subject that may be time-consuming. It doesn’t matter. It’s part of completing the task. You must persevere.

3. The editing process is next, deciding on a co-title, tags, and an appropriate photo.

Finally, I hit “publish.”

I’m smiling in my visualization. This is important. We want to enjoy the process. After all, we’re doing either something we want to do, must do, or that will advance us in some way.

Imagine seeing it completed and how excited and pleased you are to have accomplished this.

Next up

Now, take a peek into your folder, select the next most important item, and work on that one.

Once you get into the rhythm, the visualizations flow easily. It takes a little practice. It’s worth it.

You can also use this method to attain long-term goals. Use the same calming and visualization technique but see yourself completing one step today that will bring you closer to your desire.

Remember, the world’s top athletes, CEOs, actors, musicians, and entrepreneurs use this method. If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for us.

Let me know how this process works for you.