How to stay insanely focused on anything.

Always on the prowl for new and inspiring information, I discovered this blog http://www.fromthebottomup.com by Hulbert lee. Great blog and I will be sharing a few post from it in the next few weeks. If you can’t wait please check it out at http://www.fromthebottonup.com.

There are 24 hours, or 1440 minutes, or 84,000 seconds in a day. How much of that time do you spend focusing on what needs to get done? I believe that focus is one of the most important concepts in achieving any type of goal. I’m sure you’ve heard that to stay focused on something, you should write down a plan, follow a schedule, check off the tasks that you have completed, and so on.

Although these are some good tips, I see focus somewhat differently. Focus, to me, means being conscious of your thoughts at all times. Your mind is sort of like a “thought slate.” Whenever I’m conscious of my thoughts, I’m aware that either I am thinking about nothing, many random thoughts are going through my mind, or there is only one set of focused thought(s) that are going through my mind.

I believe that to stay insanely focused, you must be completely focused of your thoughts at all times. By doing this, you’ll be in a moment or mental process where nothing else around you can bother you.

This however, is a very hard thing for many people to do.

I ’m still not a master of it yet. It’s hard to stay in this conscious phase of mind for a long time, but I’m getting better and better at it, and whenever I implement this strategy, I feel like nothing outside of my mind can bother me, allowing me to get anything I want done really quickly and efficiently.

The longer I can implement this focus, the more I can get done. So I wonder what if you could stay conscious of your thoughts 24 hours a day.

If you had this power, you would be more alert, you would view things different, your state of life would completely change, and you would be able to get anything done two, three, four, five, maybe ten times faster than you normally do. It definitely feels different to be in a stage where you are always conscious of your thoughts.

But due to human nature, we let other emotions and feelings influence our thoughts. And once we lose conscious of our thoughts, and start drifting into other thoughts that are unproductive, then we lose our focus and return back to a state of a weak, lazy mindset rather the move towards developing a strong, disciplined mindset.

To prevent this from happening, I’ve figured out some ways that can help you maintain your focus and use it to a full advantage.

Don’t Allow Other Emotions, Feelings, and Thoughts Bother You

The first thing you need to be aware of is blocking out anything that may take down your conscious awareness.

Think of your conscious as two walls. Between these two walls are your thoughts. Anything that is outside of these two walls is trying to get in and invade your thoughts.

Your walls are rather weak starting out and can be easily broken through stronger forces such as things that produce high emotions, feelings, and thoughts. These things can be as subtle as just sitting on your chair, not be conscious of your thoughts, and letting your mind drift into space.

Other things can distract you depending on what type of mood you’re in, from other people talking, the music from the radio, the television being on, or any your five senses of touching, seeing, hearing, tasting, and smelling.

When you’re focusing on doing a task, whether it is boring or not, if that thought does not provide you with a high level of feelings, then it’s going to be harder to be conscious of it, and as a result, can be easily remove by other higher feelings, such as the ones that can be produced by any of the actions listed above.

If this happens, your initial focused thoughts will be completely replaced by other non-productive thoughts. This is the essence of procrastination or failing to get things done once your “walls” are broken.

Thus, not only is it a good idea to work in a place where other feelings and thoughts cannot distract you from your focused state, but you have to consciously block out these temptations that will subconsciously come at you, each time by putting up a new and stronger wall.

In the beginning it will be hard, but to help you from maintaining better focus, be conscious of your very moment. What is going on? What are you thinking about?

Then, when you subconsciously start think of something that isn’t related to what you’re supposed to be doing, do your best to catch yourself immediately. The more conscious you are of this habit, the stronger your walls will be at blocking out temptations and the easier it will become for you to work at a steady flow of pace.

Lack of Energy

If you’re at your full energy level, you will always be able to be conscious of your thoughts and block out other feelings, emotions, and thoughts. People take their state of energy for granted.

Energy is like a rechargeable battery. Every second that passes by, your energy level drops. Once it gets to zero, your body will tell your mind to shut down making it almost impossible to block out other feelings and thoughts, no matter how disciplined you think your mind is.

When you are tired, your body wants to go to sleep and your thoughts want to wander freely. Being completely conscious of your thoughts would be the opposite of dreaming. You want to be at the part of the spectrum where you have the most energy to be in control of your thoughts, not being at the part of the spectrum where you have no energy and your thoughts are running loose.

Being tired drags you down to that spectrum.

But many people take this for granted because being energy conscious is not a big deal to them. A person with full energy would have a huge advantage over a person with a lack of energy because even if a person with full energy is having trouble focusing, they still have the potential to do so, rather than letting something physical like tiredness influence their thought process.

So make it a must to get enough energy throughout the day, whether it’s getting enough sleep during the night, hydrating yourself with water, or providing your body with nutritious food, because being “thought conscious” also heavily relies being “energy conscious.”

Focusing on One Thought at a Time

When you learn to block other thoughts, emotions, and feelings that distract you and have a full set of energy, you need to learn how to create what thoughts you are having in the moment.

Do this simply by having a thought in your head or the process of doing so.

One example is already having a visual image in your mind, such as seeing yourself with a slimmer, fitter body or the thought of successfully approaching someone and talking to someone new.

Another example is focusing on the material that is already presented to you. This is like reading a book, doing math problems, or reviewing paperwork.

Then there is focusing on creating material. This is when your mind is blank and when you’re in the process of creating a thought. Doing this may be harder for people that lack imaginative skill because you start out by focusing on nothing.

The key here is to insert thoughts that may lead you to your desired outcome and throw away thoughts that don’t. But never allow unproductive thoughts and feelings to tempt you and distract you from your focus.

So, if you’re having trouble focusing, first start with one visual image in your head (any thought you want), be conscious of it, and keep it there.

Changing Thoughts at Will

Depending on what you need to get done, most of the times you’ll need to change through multiple thoughts while not doing much “action.” This requires more effort than having one thought in your head and doing lots of action like having the thought of a sculpted body while your stretching, running on the treadmill, then doing sit ups.

Something like this would be easier to do than doing a little bit of action, such as typing or writing, but constantly needing to going through multiple thoughts in a period of time. It’s a hard thing to do to have to separate thoughts at the same time in your “thought slate” or between your “two walls.”

If you were studying for a math test, having the visual picture of getting an A on the test along with focusing on the actual problems itself, would divide your focus in half. That’s why it’s important to have thoughts in your mind, but be able to change different thoughts at will.

Our brain naturally processes hundreds and hundreds of thoughts per day. You need to learn to keep the ones that you need and quickly discard the ones you don’t need.

Think of it like using a remote to change the channel. Be able to have a thought in place, but also be able to switch them quickly like switching a channel. As you are focusing on your thoughts, be conscious of them.

Whenever you are thinking, ask yourself what it is exactly that you are thinking about. When you answer that question, ask yourself if that thought is productive. If not, discard it.

When you’re focusing on searching for answers, sometimes your mind will come up with no thoughts and that’s okay.

As long as you repeat the process of using the thoughts you need when one comes up, and then discarding the ones you don’t need, then you will get things done faster.

Following Through

Following through is basically following your thoughts with the actions of your thoughts. If your actions are congruent with your thoughts then not only are you using focus, but you are now applying focus to use on productivity.

So ask yourself, are your actions congruent with your thoughts?

For example, you are thinking about checking something in the online dictionary but when you go online, you immediately check your mail. Your thought and actions are incongruent, and if you are conscious of this, you will be able to catch yourself while doing so.

You probably do this many times a day. I know I do.

That’s why you should try to limit yourself of these mistakes. The more you can follow through your actions with your thoughts, the easier you will be able to get work done at an efficient rate.

When you’re conscious of your thoughts, when you’re in the moment, and you follow through, your actions will be able to just flow like water.

Time is Irrelevant

If you’re truly focused on whatever it is that you need to get done, time shouldn’t even be part of your thoughts. Yes, time management is important but it should be the least of your priorities.

Most of the times, people have really stressful schedules. They use all their focus and obsess about time. This just harms them because their focus is on time, rather than on whatever it is that needs to be done.

Time can be a negative factor when dealing with focus.

Too much time given to finish a task and you won’t even focus. Too little time to finish a task, then you’ll focus part of your thoughts on time, rather than the task.

Time doesn’t care when your thoughts are drifting away; it just continues to move on.

Don’t let the feelings or thought of time break through your two walls; instead, continue to be conscious of the things you need to get done.

Letting Your Mind Rest

To be conscious of your thoughts all the time takes a high amount effort, energy, and self-discipline. When starting out, you may not be able to maintain focus for that long.

Let your mind rest longer between your focused states. It’s important not to fry your brain by constantly being conscious of your thoughts, but give your brain a “treat” by giving it short breaks where it can freely wander to whatever you want.

When you do this long enough, those “breaks” will actually be more meaningful to you.

Most people allow their minds to rest and wander freely throughout the entire day.

But if this time is limited, then something as simple as these thought breaks will be something to looking forward to during the day. Also, you’ll look forward to going to sleep and dreaming as this will be the biggest state where your mind can rest.

Once you’re done letting your mind breathe and relax, you can then go back to your focused state of consciousness again.

In conclusion, there are many good mindset techniques out there and focus is among the most vital of them all. If you are consciously aware of your thoughts at all times, not only you will get stuff done quicker and more efficiently, but your state of mind will seen from a totally different perspective. It’s a hard process to start at first, but if you keep practicing at it, you’ll soon be able to master how to be conscious of your every thought and have a deeper ability to stay insanely focused on anything you want.

Best,

Andy Rodie

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Paperpost.com

a palpable is the antidote for civilization.

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Behind every problem there is a bigger you in the waiting (only if you believe it)

If you think having more money means you’ll have fewer problems, then think twice about wanting to be a millionaire. Problems and obstacles don’t stop, you just get a new set of them.

Wealth and poverty aren’t distinguishable when it comes to problems, or, as I like to think of them, challenges. There are times when challenges are considerate, significant, and maybe even scary, and there are other times when we’re really just making a mountain out of a molehill.

Whether it’s over-coming a mountain of debt or making tough investment choices, it could seem daunting to take on these decisions and commit to following through.

Really, though, we all need to thank our lucky stars for mountains that seem to be in our way. Why, because I’m a glutton for punishment? No, because personally it was the only way for me to find out for myself one of the most important ideas most millionaires share in common—you have to be bigger than any problem you can ever face.

In other words, you have to think big! That’s so easy to hear, and nod your head, and say, “Well, yeah, of course.” Understanding it, knowing it, and living it, though, are different.

The truth is few people “think” big and even fewer “play” big. Why? Because “big” often means big responsibilities, big hassles and big problems. They look at that “bigness” and shrink. They’re smaller than their problems. They back away from challenges. Ironically, they back themselves into the biggest problem of all … being broke, or close to it.

The secret to success is to grow yourself so you’re bigger than any problem.
Imagine a “Level 2” person looking at a “Level 5” problem. Does this problem appear to be big or small? From a Level 2 perspective, a Level 5 problem would seem HUGE. How would it look to, say, a “Level 8” person? The same problem would seem small. To a “Level 10” person? NO problem at all. It’s just an everyday occurrence, like brushing your teeth.

It’s not a special skill that separates rich from poor, but a simple yet profound understanding—if you’re breathing, you will always have situations that aren’t perfect. Therefore, the size of the problem is never the problem. It’s always the size of you!

The bigger problems you can handle; the bigger business you can handle; the bigger responsibilities you can handle, the more customers you can handle, and the more money and wealth you can handle. Your income can only grow to the extent that you do!

So here’s your exercise this time:
Commit to growing yourself. This month, do not avoid problems and or complain about problems. Don’t let them bother you. In fact, don’t even call them problems; refer to them as “challenges” or “situations”.

Let go of the emotion and drama you create when you don’t get what you want. Just stay present and handle one situation at a time with an open mind and an open heart. Trust yourself and in the universe that everything will work out in the end.

I want to hear from you, so make sure you leave a comment and tell me your thoughts on this post. And after you do the exercise, let me know how it worked for you. Your feedback is valuable and others can learn from your experiences.

T. Harv Ecker

Best,

Andy Rodie

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TEXTAREA_ID

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Gurbaksh Chahal motivational speech, BCA Philadelphia

A motivational speech by Gurbaksh Chahal given in Philadelphia at the Business Club of America. Performed November 14th, 2008.
Enjoy.

http://www.viddler.com/player/97c94dc6/

Best,

Andy Rodie

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The four emotions that can lead to change by Jim Rohn

Emotions are the most powerful forces inside us. Under the power of emotions, human beings can perform the most heroic (as well as barbaric) acts. To a great degree, civilization itself can be defined as the intelligent channeling of human emotion. Emotions are fuel and the mind is the pilot, which together propel the ship of civilized progress.

Which emotions cause people to act? There are four basic ones; each, or a combination of several, can trigger the most incredible activity. The day that you allow these emotions to fuel your desire is the day you’ll turn your life around.

Disgust
One does not usually equate the word “disgust” with positive action. And yet properly channeled, disgust can change a person’s life. The person who feels disgusted has reached a point of no return. He or she is ready to throw down the gauntlet at life and say, “I’ve had it!” That’s what I said after many humiliating experiences at age 25. I said, “I don’t want to live like this anymore. I’ve had it with being broke. I’ve had it with being embarrassed, and I’ve had it with lying.”

Yes, productive feelings of disgust come when a person says, “Enough is enough.”

The “guy” has finally had it with mediocrity. He’s had it with those awful sick feelings of fear, pain and humiliation. He then decides he is “not going to live like this anymore.” Look out! This could be the day that turns a life around. Call it what you will: the “I’ve had it” day, the “never again” day, the “enough’s enough” day. Whatever you call it, it’s powerful! There is nothing so life-changing as gut-wrenching disgust!

Decision
Most of us need to be pushed to the wall to make decisions. And once we reach this point, we have to deal with the conflicting emotions that come with making them. We have reached a fork in the road. Now this fork can be a two-prong, three-prong, or even a four-prong fork. No wonder that decision-making can create knots in stomachs, keep us awake in the middle of the night, or make us break out in a cold sweat.

Making life-changing decisions can be likened to internal civil war. Conflicting armies of emotions, each with its own arsenal of reasons, battle each other for supremacy of our minds. And our resulting decisions, whether bold or timid, well thought out or impulsive, can either set the course of action or blind it.

I don’t have much advice to give you about decision-making except this: Whatever you do, don’t camp at the fork in the road. Decide. It’s far better to make a wrong decision than to not make one at all. Each of us must confront our emotional turmoil and sort out our feelings.

Desire
How does one gain desire? I don’t think I can answer this directly because there are many ways. But I do know two things about desire:

A. It comes from the inside not the outside.
B. It can be triggered by outside forces.

Almost anything can trigger desire. It’s a matter of timing as much as preparation. It might be a song that tugs at the heart. It might be a memorable sermon. It might be a movie, a conversation with a friend, a confrontation with the enemy, or a bitter experience. Even a book or an article such as this one can trigger the inner mechanism that will make some people say, “I want it now!”

Therefore, while searching for your “hot button” of pure, raw desire, welcome into your life each positive experience. Don’t erect a wall to protect you from experiencing life. The same wall that keeps out your disappointment also keeps out the sunlight of enriching experiences. So let life touch you. The next touch could be the one that turns your life around.

Resolve
Resolve says, “I will.” These two words are among the most potent in the English language. I WILL. Benjamin Disraeli, the great British statesman, once said, “Nothing can resist a human will that will stake even its existence on the extent of its purpose.” In other words, when someone resolves to “do or die,” nothing can stop him.

The mountain climber says, “I will climb the mountain. They’ve told me it’s too high, it’s too far, it’s too steep, it’s too rocky, it’s too difficult. But it’s my mountain. I will climb it. You’ll soon see me waving from the top or you’ll never see me, because unless I reach the peak, I’m not coming back.” Who can argue with such resolve?

When confronted with such iron-will determination, I can see Time, Fate and Circumstance calling a hasty conference and deciding, “We might as well let him have his dream. He’s said he’s going to get there or die trying.”

The best definition for “resolve” I’ve ever heard came from a schoolgirl in Foster City, California. As is my custom, I was lecturing about success to a group of bright kids at a junior high school. I asked, “Who can tell me what ‘resolve’ means?” Several hands went up, and I did get some pretty good definitions. But the last was the best. A shy girl from the back of the room got up and said with quiet intensity, “I think resolve means promising yourself you will never give up.” That’s it! That’s the best definition I’ve ever heard: PROMISE YOURSELF YOU’LL NEVER GIVE UP.

Think about it! How long should a baby try to learn how to walk? How long would you give the average baby before you say, “That’s it, you’ve had your chance”? You say that’s crazy? Of course it is. Any mother would say, “My baby is going to keep trying until he learns how to walk!” No wonder everyone walks.

There is a vital lesson in this. Ask yourself, “How long am I going to work to make my dreams come true?” I suggest you answer, “As long as it takes.” That’s what these four emotions are all about.

From the late great Jim Rohn.

Best,

Andy Rodie

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The Dream by Gurbaksh Chahal

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

The Dream by Gurbaksh Chahalhttp://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=thedream-gurbakshchahal-100212172524-phpapp02&stripped_title=the-dream-by-gurbaksh-chahal

View more presentations from Jaspal Singh.

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3 tips if you want to launch your own startup

A friend of mine came and visited yesterday and asked what would be my 3 tips if I had only 3 tips to give to someone starting a business in the Internet space these days

Best,

Andy Rodie

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