The Power of Intense Focus

This planet did not exist in a single day; you know which planet I’m talking about; it was the chosen one, the one where life strived in the middle of a soulless universe.

It took the universe 9.2 billion years to figure out how to focus its energy and matter to assemble a functioning planet called earth.

Scientists say that the universe started from the point of the big bang singularity; it was an explosion of energy scattered across space.

It wasn’t until 380,000 years later the universe was ready to create matters that matter.

Before that point in time, it wasn’t wise enough to realize that it takes only six elements, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur, to produce life on a large scale.

Only six elements out of 118, which is only 5%.

5% to create a living planet full of life. Does that tell you something?

To Focus Start from Randomness

What I dislike the most about productivity gurus is that they don’t understand the innate nature of the human mind.

When a guru suggests starting your day by writing a list of the top five tasks and then eliminating the things that don’t matter is giving you a recipe for failure.

They assume you are a robot designed to follow specific instructions without experiencing what is effective and what isn’t.

Writing a list of the things that you think are important and eliminating the tasks that you believe are unnecessary doesn’t make you more focused.

It just makes you do less of what you were supposed to dismiss.

Focus is only practical when it focuses on effectiveness.

Our spectrum of knowledge and experience isn’t enough to know the most effective activities that drive the maximum results.

Becoming focused is going through a process; it’s not a simple matter of creating a to-do list.

We first have to allow our mind to scatter and discover distinct possibilities; it has to find the most effective and what isn’t.

Then, over time, delegate the responsibility for it to narrow down and put your maximum effort into a couple of tasks that drive top results.

You seldom see a business startup begin by focusing and over-investing in a single idea and end up with success.

Successful unicorns have to go through many trials, experimentations, and pivoting; only then do they 10X their effort and money on what drives the most results.

To Focus is to Optimize

When the creator ordered the universe’s matter to compose life, it had a specific outcome in mind.

With the experience and trials, the universe had a proven recipe to follow and a few elements to stick with to create life.

This strategy allowed the universe to double down on what works and ignore everything else.

It made it easier for the universe to build a magnificent project and do it at a much faster pace.

Getting into the focus zone is to achieve the maximum outcome with the least effort and resources; otherwise, focusing is pointless.

I had a mentor who used to make me write a list of every activity I thought necessary to achieve my goals for the next five years.

He required that I shouldn’t come up with the list only by myself but to ask friends and do research as well. (brainstorming)

When I handed him the list, he asked me to disappear for three months, try those things, and then come back to him. (experimenting)

He took out the list three months later and threw it in the garbage.

Nour, now that you experiment with the things you thought would be critical for the next five years, tell me which one was the most effective in reaching the goal you set for your life? (eliminating)

Focus on that single activity for the next three years, and the rest belongs to the trash. (optimizing)

If you don’t like to go with experimenting, at least take the time to hear what scientists and practitioners have to say on which activities matter the most to achieving the maximum results.

You often discover that what drives outcomes is more straightforward than what you thought; you just lacked the right knowledge and couldn’t see it.

I lost 20Kgs/44 pounds in six months, focusing on losing weight with two activities, no carbs, and working out five days a week. That’s it.

It worked because I forced my brain to focus and double down on what matters and get results the fastest.

I did not have to read tons of books, listen to hundreds of experts and motivation gurus, buy tens of workout programs or walk 10,000 steps every day.

I went to the top and followed their advice.

Eat no carbs; work out five days a week, and you will get fit!

No muss, no fuss.