Singapore, 26 February 2020 — Why developing a triple focus is key.

In this post, we continue our exploration of how leaders focus on results and daily wins.

Daniel Goleman, the world’s well-known expert on emotional intelligence, recommends that we maintain a triple focus: on ourselves, on others, and on the wider world. This resonates with my experience that leaders can learn to focus in equal amounts on their personal world, social world, and their observed world, in accordance with the Three Worlds Model.

Furthermore, I found that there are three dimensions of focus to keep in mind: power, clarity, and change.

Focus with Power

To develop and maintain your focus effectively, you need to find out first what empowers you to be focused. Start by checking how you are doing in each of these focus enablers: your general state of mental wellness, your meditation or mindfulness practice, your exercise practice for physical fitness, your healthy food and lifestyle practices, and the quality of your sleep. If you score yourself low in any one of these, then you know what to work on.

Time management is needed for powerful focusing. When you let time slip, you can’t get it back. So spend it well, and develop the necessary practices to let you do that.

Focus requires consistent practice, and developing your grit will help you to make your focus more powerful. Angela Lee Duckworth’s TED talk about grit will point you in the right direction. She defines grit as the power of passion and perseverance. 

Developing grit for focus can start with consistently carrying out simple tasks. I’m thinking of the famous story of Navy Seals training to “Change the World by Making your Bed.” 

In my recent interview with Yumiko Sawano, a former professional tennis player in Japan, she underlined the importance of keeping to the same time schedule for her daily practice, week after week, month after month. It was this consistent practice that paid off in gaining focus and better results, she explained. 

Finally, consider the Power of Three. It’s well known among influencers and advertisers that most people will not remember anything if you tell them more than three points. 

So make an effort to narrow down your focus to three tasks at any time, and not more. You will soon discover how powerful this practice is. Note that Goleman also practiced this when he recommended you to have a triple focus, not quadruple or more. 

FOCUS with Clarity

The second dimension of focus to keep in mind is clarity in your vision and goals.

We all know about SMART goals, and that should be low-hanging fruit for leaders to practice. There is more, however...

Clarity is also needed about your purpose: about the reason why you want to achieve an objective. Asking and answering the Why question is key, as explained by Simon Sinek in his TED talk.

Clarity also points to being disciplined in what to do and maintain, what to let go of, and what to say No to. If you have difficulty saying no, you have homework to do. Steve Jobs’ focus on excluding unnecessary functions from Apple products might inspire you.

Getting clear on your vision and goals will make it easier to select and focus on your daily wins and celebrate them, which is something I found that leaders often forget to do.

FOCUS on Change

Leaders focus on influencing changes that are significant. They bring others along to collaborate and achieve results together. That involves a lot of work. My partner Andre Taylor, a leadership specialist in Australia, often reminds his students that leadership should be seen as a marathon rather than a sprint.

Another metaphor is to see your leadership growth as the challenge of climbing a ladder. When you start, you want to make sure that you have placed your ladder against the right wall. Is the change you have decided to influence a significant one that you care (feel) deeply about?

In other words, how strongly is your focus on change aligned with the life purpose you have chosen for yourself? If so, that will make it easier to keep a strong focus on that change and that purpose. Make sure that the challenges you choose are worth going for, all the way.

So there you have it — three dimensions of focus to work on: power, clarity, and change. If you would like to practice this together with other leaders, consider joining our international community called Grow3Leaders.

Joining is free of charge—not free of commitment. You are welcome if you will invite three leaders in your workplace to join together with you so that you can grow your leadership by creating a change in your together in your workplace.