365 Days With Self-Discipline: 365 Life-Altering Thoughts on Self-Control, Mental Resilience, and Success

Day 82: On Extreme Focus

Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life — think of it, dream of

it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body,

be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to

success.

—Swami Vivekananda

 

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While flawless, 100% focus on a single idea is close to impossible for

a modern human being, there’s a lot you can gain from focusing as much as

you can on just one goal. In fact, I consider it so important that I wrote an

entire book about it titled 

The Ultimate Focus Strategy

 .

There are two primary benefits of making a single idea your life.

The  first  one  is  that  limiting  your  focus  to  a  single  thing  requires  a

great  deal  of  self-discipline,  which  subsequently  makes  it  an  excellent

exercise in cultivating self-control. I’ve acquired a lot of self-discipline (and

finally  achieved  my  goal  of  building  a  successful  business)  thanks  to

limiting my focus to one business model. Sticking to one thing has taught

me  the  value  of  patience,  dedication,  and  made  me  realize  how  powerful

small (and consistent) improvements can be over the long term.

The  second  benefit  of  extreme  focus  is  that  by  centering  your  life

around the one most important endeavor, you’ll be more likely to reach it

than if you were to spread your attention thin.

You  have  higher  chances  of  implementing  new  nutritional  habits  and

losing  20  pounds  (or  10  kilos)  in  the  next  six  months  than  trying  to  lose

weight  while  also  implementing  a  new  workout  routine,  building  a  side

business, fighting against your fear of public speaking, saving money for an

emergency fund, and learning a foreign language.

If self-discipline is a resource that you can deplete (scientists are still

trying to figure it out), it makes sense to spend it judiciously, starting with

your most important goal.

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