We have discussed several aspects of “focusing” on your success. Lots of books have been written on the concept of focusing on the moment, but I want to relay an incident that brought this point into focus for me recently. Brought clarity to focusing on the moment.
I take Bikram-style yoga classes several times a week. This is a special type of yoga consisting of 26 poses in a hot room (about 100 degrees). Each class takes 90 minutes.
A few weeks ago I was in a 6 AM yoga class. About half way through, the instructor said to me “I’d like to see a little more effort there, Karl.”
My first thought was, “Hey! I got up in the middle of the night to be here for a 6 AM class! I’ve done 45 minutes of strenuous exercise and I’m about to do another 45 minutes of strenuous exercise! In a room that’s 100 degrees! There are only four other people here! I’ve already put out the effort.”
After a little reflection, of course, I had a different perspective. All those things were true. But, after all, I was there to exercise. And I’d gotten up in the middle of the night to go to a 6 AM class in order to do myself some good. So I actually had many reasons to put in a little extra effort at that moment.
The lesson is simple: You have the ability at any moment–at every moment–to put out a little extra effort. When you find yourself in a meeting you want to escape, or at a cocktail party you can’t handle, or performing a dreary task at your desk, that’s the moment to focus on your success. You are in the situation: Make the best of it. Put out a little more effort. Then move on to the next moment of your success.
In the same vein, you have the power, at every moment, to take a breath and consider whether your first reaction to a situation is the reaction you wish to exercise. You experience your life one moment at a time. Being aware of that, and experiencing it at a conscious level, will give you many more opportunities for success.
So, let’s see a little extra effort out there.
