Pamela Murray-Jones................................................. The Secret to Finding and Maintaining Focus.........
Stressed out and unable to focus?
Most of us wrongly believe that stress comes from having too much to do. In fact, most stress comes from not
finishing what we have started or in allowing distractions to get in the way of what’s really important.
In January 2013 one of my clients came to me with stress overload. She is a Chief Operating Officer who felt unfulfilled
working in a demanding industry, has two school age children and was living her life in crisis management mode.
However, by September she had achieved several of her most cherished goals - some of which had eluded her for
years.
She had written and been offered a publishing contract for her first novel. She had completed a dream tour of Europe
with her children. She has taken on a stronger leadership role in her company and as a bonus, her health has
improved!
The difference in her past and present was not more time but more FOCUS. Yes, goal setting is important, but
knowing how to identify the right goals and what you need to do to commit to them, is the real secret to achieving
focus.
The Secret to Finding and Maintaining FOCUS
In the beginning is the end ...
S: Honour your STORY. Everyone’s life story has a beginning, middle and an end. Many motivation exercises ask us to
vision our future but without some continuity, this is nothing but daydreaming. Accepting where you have come from,
knowing where you are now and where you want to go is the start of focus. Within your past, you’ll find the seeds for
future success.
U: UNDERSTAND your values, your strengths, what you really want in life and how you are motivated. This is crucial to
setting the right goals for you. Otherwise you will fail to achieve your goals or wonder why if you achieve them, why
you still feel unsatisfied.
C: CHALLENGE your current goals against your story and your values. Ask yourself some tough questions. Do I really
want this? Why? What would I be prepared to do or give up to achieve it? How would I feel if I didn’t do this now?
This is spring cleaning time. Throw out all those goals that don’t pass the challenge test and set new ones if required.
O: Identify OPPORTUNITIES to achieve our goals. Put down as many ideas as you can. You might do this as a mind
map, a collage or in some other visual way. You might want to involve others to help you as your support and success
team to help keep you on track.
F: Now map your path to the FUTURE. Establish your action plan with a timeline of achievable steps to reach your
goals.
My client didn’t take time off work to write her book. She prioritised her time to make it happen and started to
exercise so she had the energy required to reach her goals. She didn’t rush out to borrow the money to go on her
dream holiday. She involved her family in the planning, budgeted to get them there and sought help to maintain her
focus.
What could you achieve in 2014 if you were more focused? You will be amazed at what you can achieve when you
are.
Pamela Murray-Jones is an executive coach, strategist and board consultant with over
20 years’ of corporate world experience and a background across Australasia in
executive development. Pamela helps individuals in organisations focus to achieve
outstanding success. Based in the South Sydney region, phone +61 412 523 550 or
http://www.strategycoaching.com.au or email [email protected]