“It’s a well-known fact that what we give our attention to grows and what we don’t give our attention to tends to fade away.”
How to Make Your Dreams Come True – Mark Forster
What are your thoughts on this?
My dad used to say what what you think about will likely happen.
We tend to focus on the negative aspects of life. We do this for our protection. Negative things can harm us. So we’re constantly on the lookout. And we do need to protect ourselves from being harmed. But if we only focus on prevention from harm, we may miss the opportunities for growth, development and happiness.
Some examples I thought of:
- we talk in detail about a bad day at work but summarise a good day
- them: “How was your day?”
- me: “Yeah, good!”
- we look for what is wrong with a situation rather than looking for what is right
- our organisational reports generally identify error rates, not success rates
- we tend to coach faults/gaps in performance rather than build on strengths/achievements
- we complain about our lot in life rather than the benefits
- we never have enough money so we focus on our lack, not what we have
- we look how far we have to go rather than look at how far we’ve come
- we listen to the news which is commonly negative and depressing
If this is the case, we are missing an opportunity to focus on the positive. And if the initial quote is true, or at least beneficial, how might this play out in living the life we want?
This isn’t being Pollyanna – all butterflies and rainbows. It is, in fact, looking for information and examples in situation that are good and generally in any situation.
So, how would you like to think? By focussing on the lack, the gap, what you don’t have? How will that make you feel? How will your energy be?
Don’t try this at home: Spend the next 7 days highlighting all the gaps, problems and issues that you see … in detail!
Try this instead! I actually suggest you do the opposite. Spend the next 7 days looking at all the things you do have.
To do this I suggest the following:
- grab a notebook
- go in to each room of your house and where you work (might be the same place)
- write down all the things you have
- this isn’t Marie Kondo, they don’t have to bring you joy, just list them
- you may be amazed at what you have
- (you may also realise you have a bunch of stuff you no longer need!)
- do the same with relationships – this could be tricky if you’re in a tough situation
- same with finances – if you’re in debt, like we used to be, start making a plan to rectify that by focusing on what you want
Doing this exercise does not automatically resolve all our issues into a perfect life. It’s not magical. But it may help you realise how much you can be grateful for and what you can focus on.
As the quote says: “what we give our attention to grows”.
And may also help on taking some initial steps on improving some things.
I’m writing this on a perfect day in Perth, Western Australia. I’m outside on the patio. A galah is feeding from the bird feeder. The wife has just pruned the bushes this morning. There are kids a few houses over having a great time!
While I sit here, I am in to Day 6 of a 14 day quarantine. I have to stay home while the rest of the city is free as can be. I don’t like it and I don’t agree with the strategy. But, the peace and quiet, the ability to read and write is priceless. I’ll focus on that for a while!
