{"id":740,"date":"2022-06-30T20:23:22","date_gmt":"2022-06-30T20:23:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.ims-online.com\/?p=740"},"modified":"2022-07-11T15:49:31","modified_gmt":"2022-07-11T15:49:31","slug":"how-focus-leads-to-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.ims-online.com\/index.php\/2022\/06\/30\/how-focus-leads-to-success\/","title":{"rendered":"HOW FOCUS LEADS TO SUCCESS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What was the one factor that both Warren Buffett and Bill Gates stated was the key to their success? Both gave the same answer – focus. Steve Jobs was similar and was known for his single-minded focus on problems. Einstein developed a \u2018Distraction Index\u2019 when he was a teenager to build his concentration skills. If you look at anyone who achieved anything significant, regardless of the field of endeavor, you will see how focus leads to success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a society where distractions are everywhere, how do you maintain a singular focus? The road to mediocrity is littered with people who have tried to tackle too much, and in the end, become a wandering generality instead of a meaningful specific. Genius leaves clues and so does success, which means in terms of focus, there can be lessons learned from the super-successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BUFFET\u2019S CIRCLE OF COMPETENCE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The concept of the Circle of Competence has been used over the years by Warren Buffett to focus investors on investing in what they know best. The concept appeared in the 1996 shareholder letter, \u201cWhat an investor needs is the ability to correctly evaluate selected businesses. Note that word selected: You don\u2019t have to be an expert on every company, or even many. You only have to evaluate companies within your circle of competence. The size of that circle is not very important; knowing its boundaries, however, is vital.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This concept is visually depicted in a framed picture of Ted Williams, baseball Hall of Famer, that Buffet has in his office. In this picture, the strike zone is broken down into 77 individual squares. Williams understood that if he swung only at pitches in his sweet spot (his circle of competence), then his batting average would be 150 to 200 points higher than if swung at pitches in other parts of the strike zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every person has constructed useful knowledge in certain areas or disciplines through experience or study. The challenge is to figure out where you have an edge and then operate inside that circle. Just as Williams practiced having discipline and patience at the plate, waiting to swing at pitches in his sweet spot, so did Buffet with his investments, only investing in companies within his circle of competence. As the founder of IBM, Tom Watson Sr., noted, \u201cI\u2019m no genius. I\u2019m smart in spots\u2013but I stay around those spots.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my previous blog, I unpacked another one of Buffett\u2019s focusing strategies, the 5\/25 productivity rule<\/a>. This rule helps you to eliminate the majority of things you care about so you can focus on the few critical things that really matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GATE\u2019S SERIAL OBSESSIVE MENTALITY<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Walter Isaacson, in his book The Innovators, stated, \u201cOne trait that differentiated [Gates and Allen] was focus. Allen’s mind would flit between many ideas and passions, but Gates was a serial obsessor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Where I was curious to study everything in sight, Bill would focus on one task at a time with total discipline,” said Allen. “You could see it when he programmed. He would sit with a marker clenched in his mouth, tapping his feet and rocking; impervious to distraction.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gates is known for a monomaniacal focus where he would obsessively stick to something until completion. He would not allow himself to get deterred by any distractions. As a result, he was able to go much deeper into the things he truly cared about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the book Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World<\/a><\/em>, Cal Newport states that going deep on anything requires intense focus without distraction. Many of us are flooded by mountains of shallow work, including email, meetings, text messages, etc. If we are not mindful, we will spend our days busy with shallow work while not accomplishing what is truly important. In order to prioritize deep, meaningful work, we must make time for it every day. Here are a few tips to get you started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n