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Attention is Your #1 Resource

Budgeting your attention is a lot like budgeting your money. As with money, it’s not always about what you spend your resources on. It’s just as important to decide which balls to let fall, which goals not to pursue, and which roles to “just get by” in.

The difference between great leaders and everyone else is how deliberately they spend their attention. Peak performers are deliberate about everything they pay attention to.

How you spend your attention determines what you accomplish in work and in life. Spend it wisely, and you’ll move the ball forward on your goals. Squander it, and you’ll be unfulfilled. You might get stuff done, but it won’t be what you want to achieve.

MAIN POINTS:

Your attention is your most precious resource.
It is a finite, non-renewable, and non-transferable resource, so choose wisely.
How you spend your attention determines everything from success in work to happiness in life.

When we strive to be the best CEO, the best parent, an accomplished 10K runner, and travel the world, we don’t get the most out of all our experiences. There’s simply not enough attention to go around.

Everyone has the same limited attention pool to draw from. If you want to meet your goals at work and spend more time with your kids, you need to learn to cut out other activities.

SOLUTIONS:

Create weekly attention budget.

Make a “do not do” list along with your “to-do” list.

Have a distraction plan in place to ward off Attention Hijackers.

“When you work consistently long hours, or spend too much time on tasks, that’s usually not a sign that you have too much to do—it’s a sign that you’re not spending your energy and attention wisely.”

– Chris Bailey