How To Regain Your Focus

“Always remember: Your focus determines your reality.”

- Qui Gon Jinn to Anakin Skywalker, Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace

It has been a particularly rough week. In fact, the whole past month has been pretty hellish.

I think the tough times began over the Christmas break – which wasn’t much of a break, honestly. We had deadlines to respect, fires to put out, and obligations to meet. Through it all, I put my head down and bulled ahead like I always do. James kept tossing more on my plate, and I never argued.

Jamie’s plate was just as full as mine was. We’re a team, after all; we pull together and get it done. That’s what we do.

Now our world is finally settling down. The new site is up, we’re finalizing some big projects, and we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. One day soon, I might just be able to get out of the house without feeling guilty.

The only problem is that when my life slows down after such a breakneck pace, I still feel wired. I don’t know what to do with myself. All the momentum I gained while being busy still lingers. I have a hard time downshifting from high gear.

The hardest part about this job is focusing. Right now, I’m writing this post thinking it’s crap because I’m having trouble concentrating. Two other posts I wrote were crap, too. They’ll never see the light of day.

Actually, they did see daylight briefly. James read them and asked if I was feeling alright. I took the posts down because I realized I’m clinging to problems we worked through and I can’t shake them off.

I’m not alone. We all have bad days and rough periods. We all lose focus or have a hard time getting things done. Each of us has moments where we think we’ve lost our ability to function well, efficiently and in good humor.

That’s why I want to share three ways to get back on track that work for me:

Screw Off

When I start to forget the most basic of tasks and when James and I are having arguments almost every day over stupid things, it’s time for the both of us to take a screw-off day. You can, too. Go ahead. Close up the shop, turn on the answering machine, grab your keys and get out.

Entertain Me

I have days when I’m tired of giving advice and entertaining the world. I need someone to entertain me. So I lose myself in a favorite book or a movie. Sometimes, all it takes is one sentence or a particular scene to stir up my creativity.

Something different

If I’ve worked several weeks on writing projects, a graphics project is a welcome change. The past month has been an equal amount of both types of work. Now I need something completely different. I look to other hobbies I haven’t had the chance to have fun with in a while. My bow is crying for some target practice in the back yard, and my bike hasn’t been out of the garage since Christmas.

When we’ve had enough, letting go of the stress, taking a deep breath and realizing that the worst is over is important. If you focus on the past, those events taint your current reality. When you focus on the here and now, nothing is tainted.

Start fresh. Let it go. Get to bed early and clear your mind. Tomorrow is another day.

Photo: © Lucasfilm Ltd.- all rights reserved

---