It’s a curious thing, this focus. I have been thinking about this subject on and off for a good while. And to be honest, I have more questions than I had at the beginning.

Here are – without particular order or coherence – my observations, thoughts, questions and reminders (for myself) on the subject of focus. Maybe they spark something in or help you sharpen your focus too.

Your focus is what you pay attention to.
You might think it’s what you choose to pay attention to.
Most often, it’s what we’re used to pay attention to.

Focusing intentionally or going with your default focus setting will reflect in how much personal freedom you experience.

FOCUS IS A CHOICE
If it’s a deliberate choice the mind is involved in.
At the same time, it’s not just a mind exercise.
When using focus in a way that includes the mind as well as the rest of your being.
You become powerful, you get direction. You know what matters. 

EXERTNAL VS. INTERNAL FOCUS
We mostly focus on external things. If you are busy with only external factors, you lose yourself. You get scattered, after a while you might lose your focus too. Or your motivation. You get stuck.
You can refocus on what matters by focusing on your body. Bringing your attention back to yourself, you become full and alive again. You regain energy, the source of your inspiration and knowing why you were focusing on something in the first place.
Having your body and then focusing can create magic. Focusing only on outside factors, information, strategies or other people can never work in the long run.

When I guide my clients’ attention to an area of relevance in the body, I often see that they squeeze their eyes. They make an effort with their eyes and mind to visualize the area. They focus on it, mostly with their mind. Being aware of an area of focus is easy for the body. It is not a mere mind activity. It’s a collaboration of the mind and the body.

TO FOCUS BY CHOICE REQUIRES PRACTICE

If you focus on the problem, you won’t get the results you want and it’s hard to find solutions.
Try focusing on what you want. You will meet problems on the way anyways, no need to look for them. (Become friends with the idea that things can be easy too.)

The EYES and MIND are they the main areas where we make too much effort focusing.

FOCUS IS NOT THE SAME AS INTENTION
An intention, for me, is something that you have in all of your body. At least this is when I see having an intention leads to results, and contentment. By having an intention or a goal, you also know that you might not get it. All you can do is be your best and take the necessary steps. You also need to agree.

When you focus, know you will get more clarity about the specific thing you focus on. Make sure, that you don’t lose the big picture.

When people focus, they tend to contract shoulders, tense the neck, squ
(You can again try this by taking a minute and go into your habitual way of being focused, e.g. when you write on the computer or you need to meet a deadline. Pay attention to how your head feels,

And a few more questions:
Is focus the opposite of being scattered? If not, what is it? Do we need mind control to feel in control?
Can you have more than one focus?
How are focus and intention related?

A practical example (you can do right now)

Feel your belly. Focus on the are between the pelvis and the diaphragm. Take a few seconds for this.
And now notice how you feel your eyes, forehead, shoulders & neck. How do they feel? Are they tense, tight, feel contracted or shrunk?
Now: breathe again more and let go of the efforst in the head. Can you still “focus” on your belly and feel it?

What are your thoughts on the subject of focus? I’m happy if you share the post, your thoughts and insights.