Focus!
Focus. High performing athletes master it. The most notable entrepreneurs harness it. Successful authors embrace it.
To write, create, or accomplish anything at an elite level, one needs to learn the discipline of focus. You must find a way to get into your “zone”. No matter what, you can’t be distracted. Further, you won’t find excuses not to write. I once heard the Hollywood Reporter editor-in-chief tell a room full of aspiring screenwriters, “How bad do you want it?” and “If you want it bad enough, you will write no matter what. You will find the focus even if it means writing when you feel like your whole world is fighting against it.” Bill Gates and Warren Buffet both have mentioned “focus” as the primary ingredient of their accomplishments. Winning pro athletes, like Tiger Woods, have practiced and learned the art of focus since they were children. It’s often described as a flow state, when the mind and body come together. When the doing and thinking come together, peak performance is the result. Does focus prevent failure? Can focus be lost mid-competition? Absolutely and thus, even the best athletes and entrepreneurs——and writers—need coaching and readjusting their focus at times.
Time blocking for my creativity is critical. There are several days and significant blocks of time every week that my admin reserves for my “creativity time.” No calls, emails, texts or interruptions. It’s essential.
Research has shown that approximately twenty minutes is typically needed to get into that optimum zone. If you start, stop, and put down your writing after minutes thinking you’ll go back and just pick up where you left off, it rarely works…particularly to the degree of excellence you’d have if you focused. I often find my focus during my walking meditation with my dog. About twenty minutes in and sure enough, I’m having all kinds of ideas and epiphanies. I also find it sitting in silence. I find it with pen in hand, hands poised on the keyboard and then, it’s as if I’m being channeled…and often I am. On a film set, I will do similarly— ready, focused, and in the zone. The world, during a film production, falls away and I am totally present in that creative realm. The same held true when I was pursuing my trial lawyer career. As a trial lawyer, I further exercised my storytelling expertise and when I walked into the courtroom on that first day of a trial until it ended, I was in another parallel universe. I was required to be focused and in the zone for weeks.
I don’t like being creative when I’m forced, drained or winging it simply because that focused creativity has been put off by other demands. Is it possible under these or other challenging circumstances? Yes, of course, when you have more talent than the average and many years of experience. However, this is not the way to do your best work even for the most talented and seasoned. You need to learn to let everything around you melt away and immerse yourself into your writing. For those who master focus, you will strive towards not letting anything get in the way nor keep you from performing your best. When you’re distracted or not doing your best, look at your focus and re-adjust your lens.
The runner’s high, the painter’s high, the writer’s high—it’s all real. Our endorphins and serotonin levels raise and thus, so does our happiness. A day creating for me is the best. This achieved focus will lead to some of your most creative inspirations and ultimately, success in your writing and art.
My productivity and creativity have also soared when I give myself the optimum time and space to write. To do so, you need to know what will work best for you. I’m my best either in the morning or late night. I like quiet in the sanctuary of my office or writing outside in nature. I feel supported with a favorite beverage, natural or soft lighting, surrounded by my inspirational colors, books and décor along with the bonus of my loveable golden retriever under my desk. I am blessed to have lived and worked in the most beautiful places in the world. Yet, sometimes a “change of scenery” is just what I need to shake things up or impose an even more focused time. It’s not unlike me to leave the mesmerizing beach of Malibu to go write amongst the red rocks of Sedona or hike and write in the Sierras. Do what you need to do to create. Get rest and allow your brain to refresh before and after writing. Take care of yourself. Train and practice just as an athlete does.
Remove the physical and mental clutter. Establish routines. Allow yourself a place to dream. Visualize the bigger picture, the end game. See yourself writing that book. See that book finished. What does it look like? Who’s reading it? What are the results of your publishing it?
Focus is a practiced art. It doesn’t happen overnight. Look through your lens, focus and see only what you want to see at the time and write.
