5 Core Skills to Help You Focus More Effectively

In his book Yoga Beyond Belief, Ganga White frames the physical poses of yoga as tools, rather than goals.

I previously wrote how we can apply this framing of “tool vs goal” to focus.

When we view focus as a tool, rather than as a goal, we see that focus isn’t something we need to “get;” we already have it.

Like a photographer, part of our job is to pick the right lens — the right focus — for each task.

The Power of Tools Lies in Our Skill in Using Them

Any tool is useful only to the extent you know how to use it.

In his discussion of yoga asana as a tool vs a goal, White reminds us that the physical practice of yoga isn’t automatically beneficial. Yoga can heal, but it can also create injury.

Once we begin to see the physical poses of yoga as tools, we realize that we must learn the proper and skillful use of these tools.

The same applies to focus.

A photographer can have an array of lenses and still take crappy photos. Knowing which lens will create the desired effect in the photograph is a skill that differentiates photographers.

Knowing how to use the tools we have is a skill that we cultivate over time.

When we consider focus as a tool, then it’s clear that part of our job is to develop the skill of how to use focus.

In playing with this concept, I’ve identified 5 core skills to develop to help us use the tool of focus more effectively.

5 Core Skills to Use Focus More Effectively

(1) Knowing which “lens of focus” I need for different tasks

This is about putting the task first. If I’m in a brainstorming or ideation task, I want a wide lens that doesn’t focus too critically on the ideas; being too critical in the ideation phase of a project would result in killing off ideas prematurely. On the other hand, if I’m editing a document, I want a microscopic lens that helps me hone in on typos and other small issues.

Paul Graham’s explanation of maker’s schedule vs manager’s schedule is also a great example of this. A maker typically wants a large chunk of time for deeper focused work, whereas a manager tends to focus in smaller increments, chunking time into shorter segments.

(2) Knowing what types of tasks are best suited for different lenses of focus

This is about starting where you are and using what you have. If you’ve ever had a list of tasks to do and don’t know where to start, start with the tools you have available to you in the moment and match the task to the tools. One reason that David Allen’s “Getting Things Done” method doesn’t work for me is that its focus on “next action” is too linear; it doesn’t account for the lens of focus I have available. Instead, I might jump around in a project based on what’s available to me.

(3) Knowing what conditions tend to make each lens of focus available to me

This is a foundational principle in my systems for creating space for my best work. For some types of focus I need a significant chunk of time, a large work surface on which to spread out, and no distractions or noise around me. For other types of focus I need the energy of other people around me and the background din of a coffee shop.

Timing also plays a role. Our focus works on the ultradian rhythm, meaning that it’s variable throughout the day.

Seeing the patterns of what environment induces different types of focus, and what times of the day those focuses kick in, helps me better plan where and when to do different types of work.

(4) How to create the conditions that make a lens available to me

The conditions that give rise to certain lenses of focus don’t need to be left to chance. Once we see the patterns that help us generate various types of focus we can recreate them.

(5) How to switch between different types of focus, if possible to do so

Ideally we can choose the task that fits our level of focus (see 2, above). But sometimes we need a different focus type for something that truly must get done. In that case, we need the skill of switching between different types of focus, if that’s possible for us.

That “if” is a crucial caveat. Just like it’s not always possible to contort our bodies into different poses, it may not be possible to switch our focus to accommodate different work.

Part of the skill of yoga, and of life itself, is knowing how much you can push and when you need to modify the pose (or the work) to meet you where you are.

In my journey with ADHD, I’ve found that this skill of switching the lens is the one that eludes me the most. Even if I know how to create the conditions for the focus I need, switching lenses can take time.

I’d love to hear from you:

What skills do you see as essential to using the tool of focus more effectively?

What are your challenges with focus?

Please share in the comments!