Clear focus and taking action in life

Clear focus and taking action in life

Having a clear focus and taking action in life is a must if you want to be successful. Often, people lack a clear focus on what they want. Some focus on too many things. Others simply don’t take action.

Being successful in real estate, business, fitness, or any other goal will require clear focus and taking action. These principals can be applied to any aspect of life. Without this mindset, success is unlikely.

Having a clear focus and direction

Having a clear focus, direction, and taking action separates those who find success and those that do not.

“Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hours a day” – Zig Ziglar

Zig Ziglar’s famous quote about having a clear focus and direction is spot on. We’re all afforded the same amount of time. Each of us has twenty-four hours a day. However, we all spend those twenty-four hours differently. It’s the lack of direction and action that prevents most people from being successful.

Defining What’s Important

Having a clear focus will allow you to make the most of your time, achieve your goals, and live the life of your dreams.

Warren Buffet offers great advice on how to have a clear focus and take action in life. His teaching of the list of 25 is one of my favorites.

This exercise is simple. Write down 25 things you want in life. Now pick the five most important items and focus on those. Forget the other 20 items until you’ve accomplished the first five.

This is an amazing lesson. We can do ANYTHING but we cannot do EVERYTHING. Identify what five things are important to you and take action.  You are capable of anything as long as you have the right mindset. Don’t let limiting beliefs stop you from having the things you want in life.

Focusing on too many goals at once will hinder your ability to succeed. Working on too many goals clouts your focus.  Having a clear focus will allow you to take action and do more in life.

How to start taking action

First, you need to identify what is important to you. Take a few moments to dwell on what you want in life. Create your own list of 25. Personally, I recommend meditation as a way to clear your mind. Meditation is something I picked up a few months ago; I now practice regularly. Meditation provides clarity and a healthy way to relieve stress.

Stop thinking and take action

Once you have a general idea of what you want – stop thinking and take action. You will likely make mistakes on the way and you may fall short occasionally. Consider this failing upwards while getting closer to your goals.

You gotta climb the mountain to see the view. You won’t reach the top of the mountain by standing still or staying in bed.

Martin Luther King Jr. said, “take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”

While building my real estate business, there were plenty of unknowns. I did not know everything. In fact, there more I did not know than I knew. Like many things in life, you learn as you go. I kept taking steps forward and had faith that I would succeed. Perseverance is a must; keep putting one foot in front of the other and don’t look back.

The path to success was not linear. There were bumps and bruises along the way. You may even experience the occasional setback. However, if you keep taking steps you will get to where you want to go. Heck, you may even go farther than you ever thought possible.

Do not be afraid of failure or slowly making progress. Be afraid of being stagnant and standing still. When there is no struggle, there is no progress.

Action and success

Success does not happen without action. Alexander Hamilton would not have written 51 of the Federalist Papers if he did not take action.

Michael Jordan would not be a legendary basketball player if he stopped practicing after being cut from his high school basketball team.

Walt Disney, the founder of Disney, was told he lacked creativity. He kept working towards his dreams despite what others thought.

We all have an unbelievable amount of untapped potential. As we take action, we unlock our ability to thrive and achieve. By taking action in life, we discover and grow.

Clear focus meeting action

Success can be found at the intersection of ‘clear focus’ and ‘taking action’. When you combined the two, your actions become intentional and allow you to work towards your goals.

Benjamin Franklin once said, “don’t confuse motion with action.”

This is an amazing quote. Wandering around without intention or focus is ‘motion’.

Imagine you were spinning your wheels and working 80 hour weeks with no direction. This would be motion. Don’t be in motion.

Instead, take action by having a clear focus and working towards your goals. Never give up. Go out there and take action, my friends. You are capable of more than you can possibly imagine. Bill Gates famously said, “most people overestimate what they can do in a year and underestimate what they can do in ten years.”

Gates’ quote speaks volumes to me. Five years ago, I found myself in debt with little direction. However, I also had ambition and knew I wanted more out of life. Last year, I shared my story about how I went from being in debt to building a net worth over $500,000 in 4 years.

This year, I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting back over the past five years. As a 23-year-old, I was naive enough to believe I would have overnight success. I thought I could buy a dozen properties in a year and quit my job.

This was not the case. However, I underestimated what I could do in five years. Looking back on my journey, I am surprised how far I’ve come in such a short time.  I can only imagine what the next five, ten or twenty years have in store.

My ascent was faster than some and slower than others. Don’t compare your journey and progress to others. Compare yourself to who you were previously.

Figure out what is important to you, get a clear focus, and go make your dreams happen. A world of happiness, riches, and good times await you. The only thing standing in your way is you. Do you have a clear focus? Are you taking action in life? Or, are you simply going to let life pass you by?