FOCUS – Follow One Course Until Successful

by Thomas E. Anderson, II

Follow

One

Course

Until

Successful

Chances are you have seen this focus acronym before. At one point, I was seeing and hearing it everywhere. But one Monday I read the instructions “Follow One Course Until Successful” and a lightbulb went off. And yes…you guessed it…I started writing.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s Monday morning, Wednesday afternoon or Saturday night. If you are reading this post, now is the perfect time to F.O.C.U.S.

Follow. This is your journey. Pick your path, chart the course and follow it. Yes, other paths may look more appealing. But stick the path that you have been purposed to take. It’s like a magnet pulling you and you gravitate toward it. My path is building a business. I have a full-time job and freelance as a coach and consultant. But ultimately, I know that my path will lead to my business. You have the freedom to choose and follow the path that is right for you, so have a ball.

One. The number one represents simplicity at it’s best. Ghalil, author of Professional Dreamer, defines focus as “one pointed thought.” Other writers have compared focus to a laser beam. Regardless of the definition, the idea is to pare your vision down to a crystal clear concept. Before you can simplify, you have to complicate it a little. I’ll show you what I mean. Have you ever put together a puzzle while it was still in the box? Of course not. You had to dump the pieces on the table, create total chaos and put the puzzle together piece by piece. This same concept applies to your future. You have to first unleash your vision and get it on paper. Then, you can make it simple enough for someone to capture it in one glance.

Course. My wife just returned to school to pursue a business management degree. I took a look at her courses and realized that they all lead to an end…earning her degree. Her professors have created a path for her to follow. In life and business, there isn’t always a professor to map out a course. We have to trust our instincts…our intuition. We have to be like the famous jazz musicians who learned the rules of Classical music and then broke them one by one. Through bending the rules they created something totally new. You can do the same thing by staying the course. Someone will follow the trail that you blaze.

Until. Yes…there are going to be gaps when you feel that things are not working out. Yes…you may even experience a sleepless night or two in this process. And yes…you will have to keep a positive attitude even when the odds are stacked against you. You may even have to buy yourself something special or dibble and dabble in a related field while waiting for things to make sense. Do it. But just remember, what happens in the “until” is not your chosen course. It’s just something to keep you busy and keep your mind off of things. It’s a pit-stop – a detour – something to keep your hands out of the mix while life works itself out.

Successful. Here’s one thing I noticed about success – it sneaks up on you. And it seems to arrive like the most expensive Post Office packages…overnight. But no mater how it comes, success is what you make it. It is the product of bouncing back from failure after failure. Success is the result of sleepless nights, blood, sweat and tears. It is the lesson at the heart of every mistake. Success is not the opposite of failure. It comes from failing fast, failing first and failing forward. Above all, success comes through focus. By focusing daily, we succeed.

 

Thomas E. Anderson, II is a vision development coach who enjoys motivating and equipping individuals to pursue personal, professional and organizational goals that lead to a more fulfilling life. He specializes in life focus, vision development and goal acceleration.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy the following:

• How I Organized My Business Using the B-I Triangle
• Keep Running and Don’t Drop the Ball
• Are You a Visionary Entrepreneur?
• The Illusion of Multitasking

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Giving Credit Where Credit is Due:

Mountain Road – http://www.everystockphoto.com/photo.php?imageId=57701

“one pointed thought”  Quote by….. Ghalil

F.O.C.U.S.   Acronym…….source unknown