Jedi mind focus trick – How I stay focused on one thing at a time

One of the big problems that many other serial entrepreneurs (including myself) face, is staying focused on one task at that time. It seems as though when working on a project and making good progress suddenly 1 million other ideas spring to mind. All such ideas seem to have massive potential which I shall be working on straight away. Perhaps you know the feeling..

This is a common trait for entrepreneurs, as the very art of being creative means that often we get bored very quickly or that our minds are springing lots of new ideas all the time.

I have however  started using a simple system which has helped me to keep focused without having to sacrifice any of the additional ideas that I seem to create. The way I do this is outlined below:

1) Firstly, I decide what is the most important task for me to be focusing on.

This becomes my primary task, and the one I will focus on strongly until it is finished.

2) Naturally, my mind often does start to wonder. So, when ever I find myself starting to wonder I asked myself the simple question:

“is what I am currently doing helping to complete my primary task”

What I find is that perhaps 90% of the time it is not helping to complete my primary task, even though I originally felt it is beneficial to my business.

3)  Whenever I find that the task is not related to my primary task, I simply write it down  in a notebook that I always carry.

What I do is  write a short two or three-line summary. In this short description I briefly describe what the creative idea was, who it would benefit and how it would be used.  Enough detail for me to take up the idea later so I remember exactly where I left off.

At the end of the day, or during one of my regular breaks I am allowed to revisit the ideas I jotted down in my notebook and expand on them a little. I am not however, allowed to work in-depth on this new idea until my primary task has been finished. You have to train yourself to stay focused on one thing at a time. Certain people should not even allow themselves to look at this notebook until the primary task is finished.

This has helped me drastically increase the number of projects I actually finish, and being a great system to help me stay focused on my task. Naturally, there is a learning with this method and I’m am finding that slowly it’s becoming more and more simpler to focus upon my primary task.

So remember,  ask yourself constantly if what you are currently doing is helping you achieve your primary task.

Remember to also jot down any additional ideas you have into a notebook so that you can visit them LATER in your free time to expand on them. You are not forgetting them, you are simply helping yourself prioritize and staying focused on the task in hand.

Give this method a chance, and see if it can help you too because this is the secret to how I stay focused on one thing at a time.

Tagged as: Creativity, Focus, focus tip, Ideas, prioritise