There’s only so much one can focus on before being spread too thin. At the same time, being solely focussed on only one thing can be equally damaging from the perspective of not living a balanced life.
My take on it:
True success in any one area requires pretty intense focus. However, that doesn’t mean that this particular area requires 16 hrs devoted to its success. Case in point, work. I make the most of my time at work. That’s a solid 8 hrs put in. That leaves me with another 8-10 hrs to give to other important areas in my life.
- One of those areas is my family. I try to spend quality time with each member of my family.
- Another is my fitness and health. I devote a good 30-60 minutes of my day to fitness endeavours daily
- The final one I’m going to mention is my contribution to fitness through writing, to which I devote about an hour each day.
Think of it as a 4 lane superhighway. The FAST LANE is my family. I serve them. I maintain a meaningful mentorship role for my kids. I enjoy my time with each member of the family, whether its a coffee with my wife or conversation or games with the kids.
The left MIDDLE LANE is my health. It’s a fast lane. this lane still required me to go faster than the regular flow of traffic in the other lanes.
The right MIDDLE LANE is my career. Students are dependent on me. I value my contribution to education and I get paid for it. I go over the speed limit with my job, offering my time coaching and mentoring.
The COLLECTOR LANE is the slowest of the 4 lanes. This is my fitness writing. Sometimes I need to get off the highway for a break. This is the lane that does that. I may not write for a few days. It doesn’t mean that sometimes I don’t pick things up when required to meet personal deadlines, shifting into the next lane.
Here’s my point: You can focus on more than one thing and maintain the level of intensity required to be successful. Realistically, we have a capacity of 4 lanes with which we can meet or exceed the speed limit. The rest of the stuff in our lives are for the side roads, wherever there’s time in the day.
To say that you don’t have time for the 3-4 very important things in your life would be to lose perspective of your ability to manage your time to maximize your day.
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