★On Becoming More Focused

Yes the key is to break it all down to small pieces. I would like to hear how members of our community view their blueprint for moving forward. What end of the continuum are you on – having a descriptive personal mission statement or are you spontaneous and ‘somehow’ wing it? Do your affirmations play a large role in how you plan? Or do you plan and allow your affirmations to pave the way to get your needs met? Or a combo? And what are your techniques to see things with fresh eyes?

• • ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    really like this quote from Lee on this thread – “I can only really focus on whatever it is that my heart is interested in
    intro to be revised to bring current in 2015
  • ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    One of my favorite ways (which another member once said) to be focused is saying : Nothing more important than Saying or doing (blank) _______________

 

I can only really focus on whatever it is that my heart is interested in. It’s the reason I have so much trouble working for someone else, I find it very difficult to get deeply involved in something that I don’t truly believe in.

It’s for this reason that I follow my purpose. I’ve never really been able to articulate my purpose, until I read the following quote from this page

_“My purpose is to fully realize/actualize my Self and to make
my contribution. I cannot fully realize my Self without making my
contribution, and I cannot make my true contribution without realizing
my Self.”_

To me this was a profound and accurate articulation of my purpose, and being able to articulate it in this way gave reason for my every previous action and help shed light on where my heart was heading and why.

A teacher of mine gave the ‘stuck in the mud’ analogy. Ie, You and your friends are all stuck in the mud. You are no help to your friends until you have freed yourself. Only then are you able to help you friends.

I appreciate this analogy, but it wasn’t entirely true to me. The way I see, if I figure out a way to get out of the mud, or at the very least prevent myself from getting MORE stuck, providing I can articulate it, I can tell my friends and help them out BEFORE I get myself totally unstuck.

Of course being able to free myself completely makes myself far more useful, but to extend the analogy, from my understanding it may take many lifetimes to get yourself free of the ‘mud’ that is everyday existence and it’s related issues.

A more accurate analogy is that being selfish and attempting to ‘realize’ myself allows me to spread positivity and any gained wisdom in ‘real time’ so to speak, and in this way I can have an impact on other peoples lives whilst at the same time realizing myself and my purpose.

And so this is how I keep myself focused :)

As focus is often related to productivity in the work place, I can say in all honesty that this way of being has caused me to be unable to work for extended periods with other people. If I cannot believe in a project or product then I cannot give it my all. If I lose faith in a project or the people involved then my being a part of it becomes worthless to me and everyone involved.

Due to this fact, I haven’t been very ‘productive’ in the workplace, and have suffered financially because of this. However, I believe I am on track to figuring out how to stay on my purpose, spread positivity and any gained wisdom AND provide for myself and Mel financially, so I’m looking forward to the next few months, whilst enjoying learning as much as I can right now, whilst I am in the moment.

As another quick note, when it comes to focus, I believe that secondary to believing in what it is that you are doing, being in the moment is the only way to truly focus and get ‘in the zone’.

I believe that when people refer to being in the ‘zone’ they actually mean they were in the moment :)

On top of this grounding, I believe that the usual self development techniques apply and can help you progress. This includes things such as having a defined and measurable goal, breaking it down into smaller, easily achievable sub goals and always keeping the end in mind.

P.S – I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mel, the bmindful community and all my other teachers for helping me this far.

P.P.S – this was a bit of a rant, I hope it was on topic and useful to somebody :)

Also, the fresh eyes is a great way to look at things.

When you look at something in any other way, you come at it with prejudice and bias. If you think you know something, then you limit yourself from all other possibilities.

Only in looking at things with ‘fresh eyes’ can you be open to new possibilities and truly change your way of being.

Lee and Laurie,

I just read your posts and wanted to respond. You have both given me food for thought. Thank you.

I agree that seeing with fresh eyes and hearing with fresh ears is the only way to be in the moment – to be mindful. When we think we already know what someone is saying – or worse, about to say – we aren’t hearing them and we aren’t seeing what we need to see about them – or ourselves. Thank you both for reminding me about this. I continue to have to remind myself to quiet my own mind and just BE PRESENT…..I wake up in the morning and ask the universe what is it I need to know today – what have my dreams just told me…..then I seem to lose that focus as the sameness of my routine of my day unfolds.

As a teacher, there are some ways I cannot change my routine…the bell will ring at the same time everyday…the same students….etc etc. But maybe I really need to shake myself ( and them ) up with new approaches – and see what I need to see.

Thanks to you both. I have a renewed energy and focus to establish those things I’ve ‘been meaning to do’ because it’s MY intention – not later, when I have time.

WOW!…Laurie, This is a GREAT thread, with some excellent insight. We’re really honored to have found this community.

You guys are all such amazing people, with beautifully creative minds and kind and loving hearts, as is evident in all the writing here. We could read thread pages all day everyday. Thank you to everyone who shares there questions and kind opinions with so much love.

We agree with everything said thus far and would like to share our method for staying in the moment and thereby focused and motivated. It has proven to be increasingly effective as we have continued in our practice.

We start each morning with this short affirmative prayer:

“Dear God you are inside of me, you are within every bird and each mighty mountain. The sweetness of your touch reaches everything and I am well protected. Thank you for this beautiful day. May joy love peace and compassion be a part of my life and the life of all who are around me on this beautiful day.”

Initially when we first stared this routine, for a period of about thirty days or so, we kept this prayer next to our bed so I could be sure to memorize it word for word, we wanted to be sure we focused-on only it FIRST THING upon waking, BEFORE any other thoughts entered our minds for the day. We were careful to say it slowly with focus and intention to feel the words.

I then after a short trip to the restroom, we spend a minimum of 15 mins in meditation with the first 3-5 mins with a so-hum breath… i.e. when inhaling think or say softly to yourself Sooo…and then while exhaling completely(thinking or saying softly)Hummm.

I think meditation is the key, because during mediation the body and mind operates at optimum levels. Sciences has shown reduce blood pressure and improved brain function as two of the many known benefits of regular mediation.

This mediation has increased our focus, energy and creativity which has resulted in increased income and an improved general peace of mind and happiness.

In addition my health has improved, dare I say dramatically.
We continue to learn more about the scientific bases for the effectiveness of meditation in general but in the mean time it is changing every area of our lives for the better. It helps us stay focused and we seem to get a fresh prospective any time we need one, simply by meditating. It has proven to be a great re-boot for our thinking when ever or wherever we need one. We are continually amazed at how a “fresh-eyed approach” opens up so many more possibilities, that simple didn’t exist in the old prospective.

My wife loves to take a quick re-boot on a trip to the ladies room. One of my new favorites, is at a stop-light… you don’t have to worry about missing the light because (someone stressing about time) will always let you know :-) I think we just really enjoy being able to get a new relaxed prospective anywhere, anytime.

We really hope this helps any of the wonderful people here at bmindful.
If it could even possible be, half as effective for anyone here, as it has been for my wife and I then we are honored to have the opportunity to share. After all to us, that’s what it means to Bmindful.

Laurie, thanks again for the thoughtful and inspiring post. Your life is blessing when you simple do what only you can do. Continue to BE the Blessing, BE Love most all BE YOU!

Namaste

P.S. We has since, created a video version of this affirmative prayer, anyone interested can visithttp://yourelevatedlife.com/eleavision.

In response to I Live The E-Life’s post:
What a cool channel

Thank you for your loving words, and ideas.

I will try your prayers and method of meditation. Sounds wonderful!

I love your morning routine! That’s a good one! I began starting my day more positively a few months ago too. I needed to replace my old alarm clock, so I purchased one which can play CD’s or mp3. I set the alarm to play music which sings to me ‘Today is going to be a good day” over and over again. It literally gets stuck in my head and I sing it to myself for the rest of the morning…..affirming my intention for the day whether I want to or not – it’s STUCK! I take the 3 minutes of the song to gently stretch my neck and sholders over the side of my bed, set intentions for the day and be grateful for everything I’ve been given.

I keep affirmation cards within sight at work ( on my computer) and in my car….when I feel I’m losing focus, I am always being reminded by my little cards.

I also set my computer passwords to be affirmations….everytime I log on – it’s something great like “Iamsafe”.

Little moments….they add up!

Have a great day everyone!

In response to jfowler’s post:
What is this song on your alarm clock? Is it on youtube?

Yes! Priscilla Ahn’s “Morning Song ( Good Day)”. It’s on YouTube. She’s a lovely young musician with an old soul.

In response to jfowler’s post:

is this it?

Sadly, I cannot view anything on youtube while at school…..it’s blocked by our server…..I’ll have to let you know later when I’m home, if needed.

Hi Laurie,

Thanks for starting this wonderful thread.
I started with goal setting after reading the book 7 habits.. written by Stephen Covey. It’s a must read for anyone who wants to have a more effective life in terms of wealth, happiness, relationships, leadership etc.

So this book really motivated me to write down my mission and vision statements. From that I derived my 5 years goals, 1 years goals, 1 month goal , and so on. So I maintain a list of daily tasks , which fall into either personal or professional brackets.Next I prioritize them, and decide how much time I will be spending on each one of them approximately and what time, I will be doing them.
My daily meditation practice helps me in staying focussed, while I am actually doing those activities :)

Hope this answers your question :)

Namaste

Thanks for sharing what you do..Even if we do something similar..it’s great to hear from you and others (a lot) what you do. Because part of being focused is staying focused(:

• Here’s something I liked Stephen Covey’s book is mentioned(:

In response to Laurie~LovesFocusingWell’s post:
In response to egghead’s post:
Speaking of Stephen Covey..a long time ago I went to his site, where they had a mission statement generator..and it wasn’t working. It is now

In response to Lee Nutter’s post:
I reread your post Lee..
“I can only really focus on whatever it is that my heart is interested in. It’s the reason I have so much trouble working for someone else, I find it very difficult to get deeply involved in something that I don’t truly believe in. It’s for this reason that I follow my purpose./And then the excerpt re:purpose.
“You must dissolve the borders of your perceptions that more and more of what IS can come into your conscious knowing…” IRSHA
_“My purpose is to fully realize/actualize my Self and to make
my contribution. I cannot fully realize my Self without making my
contribution, and I cannot make my true contribution without realizing
my Self.”_

Affirmations on Focusing

This thread was created in 2009. I condensed my responses to the post above, so there would be more room…to revisit this thread in 2012. Hope you join me here when the spirit moves you(:

I like the meditation you do LivingtheE-Life and your routine-sharing(:

Here is 1 I admire, that I’d like to share. I read the book 3 Magic Words in the 70’s, and it was such an inspiration back then. I still love the meditation today. ► by~ U.S. Andersen, author of book Three Magic Words (1954) suggests repeating the meditation below, after a daily 10 minute period of stillness.

“I know that I am pure spirit, that I always have been,
and that I always will be. There is inside me a place of
confidence and quietness and security where all things
are known and understood. This is the Universal Mind,
God, of which I am a part and which responds to me as I
ask of it. This universal mind knows the answer to all of
my problems, and even now the answers are speeding
their way to me. I needn’t struggle for them; I needn’t
worry or strive for them. When the time comes, the
answers will be there. I give my problems to the great mind
of God; I let go of them, confident that the correct answers
will return to me when they are needed. Through the
great law of attraction, everything in life that I need
for my work and fulfillment will come to me. It is not
necessary that I strain about this, only believe. For in
the strength of my belief, my faith will make it so. I
see the hand of divine intelligence all about me, in
the flower, the tree, the brook, the meadow. I know that
the intelligence that created all these things is in me and
around me and that I can call upon it for my slightest
need. I know that my body is a manifestation of pure
spirit and that spirit is perfect; therefore my body is
perfect also. I enjoy life, for each day brings a constant
demonstration of the power and wonder of the universe and
myself. I am confident. I am serene. I am sure. No matter
what obstacle or undesirable circumstance crosses my
path, I refuse to accept it, for it is nothing but illusion.
There can be no obstacle or undesirable circumstance to
the mind of God, which is in me, and around me, and
serves me now.”