Having trouble reaching your goals? How to focus your attention and avoid distractions

The vast majority of us have set long term goals and are consistently trying to accomplish them.  We are all working toward something and we have created action plans that we have integrated into our daily routines that will allow us to make continual progress.

However, sometimes we run into roadblocks. Despite the fact that we have goals, a plan and are directing our time and effort toward executing the plan, we are not seeing the type of progress we desire or perhaps things are just not coming together quickly enough.

Many people will:

(1) Abandon their goal assuming it wasn’t meant to be;

(2) Modify or reconsider their action plan assuming something in the plan needs to change;    OR

(3) Become frustrated and assume they have hit their plateau

However, let’s not jump to the wrong conclusion here or abandon any goals…

The alternaview
The alternaview is that we need to step back and look at the situation a little differently.  It is not time to abandon your goal and it really may not even be necessary to modify your plan.  Instead, you need to look at how you are directing your attention. Are there things coming into play that are distractions and working against you because they are decreasing your ability to direct the majority of your attention toward your daily plan and ultimately what you are trying to accomplish?

I would imagine that analyzing your attention dispersion may not be something you are generally thinking about.  However, oftentimes how you are directing your attention is the exact thing that is going wrong when you are not making as much progress as you want or things are not falling into place the way you desire.

Why?

Because when you direct your attention to something daily, you supply it with the energy and focus it needs to progress.  And, this is also a time where “more is better”.  The more attention and energy that you are able to direct everyday to what you are trying to ultimately do, the more positive the momentum behind it and the better chance it has to progress successfully.

So, if the idea is to direct as much of your attention as possible toward your goals and your action plan, day after day, the logical question is what is preventing you from being able to consistently do that?  What is lessening your amount of daily attention you can give to your goals and your plan?

Distractions…

And these distractions come from other people, situations, temptations, and thoughts that all work to direct your attention elsewhere.  They can work alone or together and they distract you from working toward your goals and completing your daily action plans.

Distraction #1: People
People will distract you by inviting you to get caught up in their melodrama.  It can be a debate or disagreement they are inviting you to have with them or even them venting or gossiping about something or someone else.  You could be going through your day, minding your own business and effectively making progress…when you come into contact with someone and before you know it, you are caught. They have cast their fishing line and hooked you in and you are no longer focusing on what you are trying to accomplish, but rather melodrama.

Distraction #2: Situations
Situations will distract you because you feel you have to stop everything and take care of them immediately.  Perhaps there is an unresolved situation at work that requires your attention or someone was supposed to come and do something for you, but they never showed up or you were supposed to get a refund on your credit card that never came through…whatever the case may be, these things arise and because they weigh on your mind, they are distractions.   Even if you have set aside time to focus on working on your plan or accomplishing something, before you know it, you have redirected your attention to this other situation that is not an emergency and does not warrant your immediate attention.

Distraction #3: Temptations
Temptations are major distractions because they have the ability to lure you in and before you know it, you have totally redirected your attention to something else.  You know those times where you really know that you need to get something done, but instead you decide to surf the internet, read a book, watch television or partake in some other type of temptation.  It has sucked you in and you are no longer doing what you need to do.  You are no longer making progress toward your goal.

Distraction #4: Thoughts (and not good ones)
You can be working and successfully accomplishing things and a little thought will creep into your head suggesting that you are not ever going to be able to get where you are trying to go.  A thought can arise that suggests your goal is not practical or it is just too big.  There is so much that will need to fall into place and you are not confident that you will ever cross the finish line.  Even though you may have made some progress, the thought has destroyed your confidence for the day.

How to use this alternaview:
1. Stay focused on your goals and what you are trying to do. Keep to your daily action plan. Set time aside everyday to work against your plan and don’t allow anyone or anything to take you off course.  Of course, much easier said than done, but once you identify the things that are taking your attention away from your daily action plans and minimizing your effectiveness, you can be on the lookout for them and prevent them from interfering.

Don’t let people sway your attention.  People are going to always have melodrama and you need to develop a strong immunity against their distractions.  Don’t let situations suck you in…there is always going to be something that needs to be taken care of.  You need to be able to avoid distractions as much as possible, and most certainly during those times where you have set aside time to work against your plan.

2. Don’t believe the Negative Hype.
Don’t buy in to any thoughts that chip away at your confidence.  Anytime that you feel one arising, address it and suggest to yourself a counter point that allows you to see the thought is nothing more than negative hype.  You can’t let limiting thoughts hold you back and you have to understand that although they may arise from time to time, they can most certainly be controlled.

3. “Work Hard & Play Hard.”
There are most likely going to be those times where you are going to want to give into temptation.  However, there will be fewer of those times if you follow the motto “work hard and play hard.  Don’t always make it a struggle of resisting temptation because you have deprived yourself of having a good time.  Sometimes you really do need some down time from working toward your plan and putting your attention elsewhere can help you replenish and restore your energy and focus.  Of course you have to strike a good balance between “working hard” and “playing hard”.  You need to have fun and enjoy life with some temptations, but you can’t get carried away. Figure out what that appropriate balance is and then work to include both hard work and fun in your life.

4. Understand how the process works. So, usually when we accomplish a goal, especially a big goal, we have devoted the right amount of attention, focus and energy to it over the long term.  It is not something that happened overnight, but rather something that we continually dedicated ourselves to and worked toward.  That is how the process works and the more attention and positive energy we are able to direct toward our goal, the easier it is for things to fall into place.  It’s a long term process that requires continual motivation, attention and dedication and so we need to make certain that we are having more days where we are successfully devoting the right amount of attention and not getting distracted.

There are going to always be things that are fighting for our attention, but we get to choose what will win and what we will put our focus on. The reality is that when we really want to accomplish something we have to devote a sufficient amount of attention toward it and avoid distractions that can lessen the amount of attention we have available.  You are way more than capable of accomplishing whatever it is you desire, but you have to know how to successfully navigate around distractions and stay focused on the bigger picture.  That just may be what is holding you back…that is the alternaview.

Have you ever had challenges reaching goals?  Do you agree with this alternaview?