The Focus - Information Focused On Your Needs

Every where I turn, someone is talking about focus. The need to get focused. Change your focus. Broaden your focus. Narrow your focus. Focus on (name our favorite item). Focus must be important. Everyone says it is. I just had trouble figuring out exactly what they mean and how to do it. Focus.  A small, but powerful, word with many meanings.

Focus

As a noun:1. a central point, as of attraction, attention, or activity:

• The need to prevent a nuclear war became the focus of all diplomatic efforts.
• The focus of our discussion/debate/attention will be drug abuse.
• The scandal became the primary focus of the day’s news coverage.
• The study’s main focus is adults with sleep disorders.

2. a main purpose or interest :

• He’s successful, but he feels that his life lacks focus.
• His life lacks a focus.

3. a state or condition in which something can be clearly understood

• She tried to bring the important issues into focus.

As a verb:1. to concentrate: to focus one’s thoughts. 2. to become focused. I finally came up with a focus system that has meaning for me. Many of you may find this pretty obvious or simplistic.  That’s OK.  It works for me.

As an example:

I’ve been playing around with Internet Marketing since early 2010.  I say ‘playing’ because my efforts lacked focus. I would try something for a little while then move on.

I spent most of my time ‘researching’ this and half-heartedly ‘trying’ that.  No method, system or technique made the easy money that was promised.

It didn’t take too long for it to dawn on me that if it were actually easy, everyone would be making a lot of money on the internet.  OK… I’m willing to work hard.  Now what?

There are so many ways make a living online.  What direction should I take?  What method should I use?  What programs/software should I invest in?  I had more questions than answers.

When it comes to Internet Marketing there are more theories, techniques and systems than there are marketers trying to teach us the latest and greatest methods.

In fact, many not only teach multiple methods, many of them teach conflicting methods!  They do this hoping one will appeal to you and they can sell you lots of stuff to make them you successful. Naturally, their main focus is their own your success. There are some good Internet Marketers who are honest and helpful. Just be careful.

Now… back to focus and how I use it.

In a way, it is like goal setting.  You first set a very broad goal then narrow it down to what you need to do today to reach that goal.

You can also compare it to using a telescope. You use low power to search in a wide area then incrementally zoom in until you see exactly what you are looking for.

One more example would be Google maps.  I sometimes need to zoom out so I can focus on the big picture and make my trip plans. As my path approaches major intersections, I need to focus in tight enough to make my way through them. When I’m near my final destination, I may need to focus in even closer so I can see the details I need to get exactly where I want to go.

I try to apply this technique to every project. I start with a focus that is broad enough to see how it fits into the big picture I have painted. I then narrow the focus a little at a time until I come to a final decision.

At this point I will have an outline of the steps I need to take. I can focus on each one until I get to where I want to be.

None of these steps are set in concrete.  Things can (and often do) change. Google maps can’t predict traffic jams or construction projects. Roads get closed and others opened all the time. Be prepared to broaden your focus when you need to so you can plan another path.

One mistake I used to make was trying to focus too narrowly from the start. I often found myself heading in the wrong direction.

Let’s say you want to install a new floor.

You like the looks of laminate floors so you research how to install them. You decide it is something you can do, so you look into what special tools may be needed, how much they cost and the best place to get them. That all looks good so you continue your research.

Now you look for the exact style and color you want. Once you make that decision you look into the quality and other specs so you know exactly what to buy.

Oops… you discover that laminate flooring isn’t the best choice for the bathroom you want to put it in.  It isn’t as resistant to water and humidity as some of the other choices are.

While you find there are ways to install it that will help protect it from moisture, you decide it isn’t worth the risk. All that time wasted doing research on things you now don’t need.  If only you had started with a broader focus (bathroom flooring ideas) and then narrowed that focus a little at a time, you could have made better choices.

This is where The Focus comes in.

The focal points I have on this site are designed to help you get started on your research. It is my hope that they will provide the broad focus you need to start your search. Here are some of the recent articles: