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Focusing it right

Porus P. Munshi

Zen or Zenna is derived from the Chinese Ch'an or Ch'ana, which is further derived from the Sanskrit Dhyan or Dhyana meaning meditation or focus of attention. What is it about focus of attention that brings forth an entire system of philosophy and way of life?

Through millennia, humans have recognised focus as the one factor essential to success in any field. When we are focused, we do our best at any activity -- whether it is selling something, hitting a ball, drawing up a strategic growth plan, playing chess or simply enjoying a musical tune. And when focus is lost, we don't perform at our best.

Unfortunately, unlike mathematics or the sciences, the ability to focus is not something that can be handed down from generation to generation as a body of accumulated knowledge. Each individual has to learn it through trial and error. To really understa nd what focus is, watch a cat watching a bird. It watches with its entire being; you can almost see every part of its body watching the bird.

Among the major factors that affect focus are boredom, anxiety, conflicting demands and premature celebration.

Boredom occurs when a person's attention is not fully occupied by the task or job. Let's take an activity as mundane as peeling potatoes. After a certain point of time, the individual becomes quite skilled at it and the task requires very little attentio n, leading eventually to boredom. Many industrial jobs are like that. Now, suppose the potato peeler decides to time how many potatoes he peels in a minute and then tries to constantly improve on that figure, he will invest a greater degree of attention in the task. Suppose he decides to maintain a fixed rate that's just enough to stretch him, his focus will stay high not only because of the challenge imposed by the task but also because he will have to use a judicious mix of small and large potatoes to maintain that rate.

Another way to maintain interest in routine tasks is to focus on some aspect of the task. Such as ensuring an even breadth of peel, in the case of peeling potatoes, or peeling in one unbroken length. Many chefs use this method to test their skills as wel l as maintain focus in the task. For greater effect, one can add the time factor -- peeling a certain number in a minute.

Anxiety occurs when a person feels overwhelmed by the demands of the task. Here, inner feelings and voices swamp the person. Say, you are going for an important meeting with a big client. Let us assume that you have a second meeting with a client whose b usiness you don't really hope to get. Will there be a difference in your approach to the two clients? In the way you feel, in the voices in your head? When will the doubts, fears and instructions from within be louder? In the first case usually. The part that doesn't trust you constantly gives you instructions on how to make sure you make a good impression, how important this sale is and not to goof up, and so on. You end up listening to the voice inside your head rather than the client. While in the se cond case, because the inner voice doesn't come into play, you are able to focus on the client and his needs. Listening is better, and a better rapport is established.

Again, to overcome anxiety, focus is needed. You can focus on the client's tone of voice, on his interest level, whatever. As long as you focus on something about him, your anxiety will be under control.

Focus is often seen as a battle against distraction... An ability to keep distractions at bay using sheer will-power. But do you really need will-power to maintain focus? Distractions occur all the time and can even occur when we are locked alone in a ro om with a task. When we bring past issues with us -- things left undone or something suddenly remembered or even a temptation such as a cup of coffee -- distractions occur. We would be using up a lot of will-power if we have to keep battling them. The ke y here is not to fight them or to try pushing them out of consciousness but to stop awhile and be aware of what is distracting us. You will find that once you give the distracter its moment in the spotlight and then make a conscious choice to continue wh at you're doing, it pipes down. On the other hand, if you refuse to acknowledge its presence, it will set up a dharna and shout slogans in your inner ear.

And, finally, premature celebration. How often have we seen at Wimbledon how a player who is just a game or even point away from victory ends up losing the match? Ever wondered why that happens? In post-match interviews, players recount that the person c lose to winning begins to think of the match as already over and sees himself holding the winner's cup. Focus shifts. The opponent, on the other hand, takes it ball by ball. He focuses on the ball and nothing else exists except the ball to be hit to the other side. When this happens, the potential winner, whose focus has already been shifted, gets impatient and frustrated and this further shifts focus. Anxiety sets in, and the match goes out of his hand.

As the Zen masters say, he who has 100 miles to walk should consider 90 miles as only half the journey. Many entrepreneurs fail at this 90th milepost. They stay focused all through their difficult times and then, when a big order finally comes in, they b egin to make expansion plans or plan how they are going to spend all the money they are going to be making. Focus shifts and things start going wrong. This is often attributed to the `evil eye'; but, in fact, it's just that he has taken his eye off the b all.

We have to constantly remind ourselves that any performance is made up of an endless series of present moments and these moments are all we really have. The greater the number of these present moments we are able to focus on, the better our life. As Timo thy Gallwey puts it, focus is the master skill behind all skill development.

The author is a Chennai-based HR consultant. He can be reached at porusmun@hotmail.com