Sneak Peek of Focus Survey

Thanks to everyone who completed my survey about focus. about 125 people participated, which is great.

Wondering who the winners of the two Amazon.com gift certificate are? Congratulations to Charles A. and Kim M. - You will be receiving your gift certificates in the next couple days.

For those of you who asked for the results by email, I should be able to get this out in the next couple weeks.

Here is a sneak peek at the responses to one question. Very interesting I think.

Fill in the blank: If only I could ___________ , I would be more focused.

• clearly see the finished product
• have more control of my environment
• ditch certain projects AND/OR stop second guessing myself AND/OR do the less important stuff with just a little less perfectionism and leave mysef more time AND/OR occasionally banish the "helper" in me who takes on the takes no one else wants to do but need to get done whoich disctract from my main projects
• If only I could find one outcome I want more than anything, I could be more focused.
• Automate the things I need to keep tabs on: Define some rules and have the obvious action happen automatically and unusual things notify me. Then I could stick to big projects without having to skip around.
• be seen as a strategic partner instead of a "necessary evil"
• have a private office
• have a private office
• Say no more often! Influence others to accept a slower pace!
• control my interest in doing more things in less time,
• if only i could have fewer demands on my time and more assurance of some success in my work, i would be more focused fear of failure is a great big de-focuser
• Work from a single office (I am a RoadWarrior).
• sustain desires and goals throughout day to day living
• If only I could totally integrated, I would be more focused.
• ... turn off the bureaucratic noise that constantly bombards me from corporate staff....
• have a real office instead of a cube
• Get rid of the 100 emails I have to respond to on a daily bases from head office and senior staff
• get an assistant to handle the minutia
• close my door
• build a clone
• handle multiple projects more effieciently
• have more meaningful work
• be more clear about what I'm after
• organized at times
• Get an office with a door.
• only have more sex (sex frees up the mind of other potential problems)
• eliminate family problems
• re-establish clear business process
• ignore my supervisor
• get more excited about what I am doing
• Prioritise
• find more time to exercise
• find some quiet time
• Do one thing,
• work alone
• see the results faster
• have more uninterrupted time
• Read more history.
• Nothing!! I look at a statement like this as being an excuse. THere is nothing special about focus than just doing it when the time and task requires it.
• take off some very diverse hats...
• have more time
• be more disciplined
• work less
• hear myself think
• Have an office with a door.
• If only I could be less anxious I would be more focused.
• get some alone time
• Prioritize
• Resist blog reading and blogging (that is the distraction of the day for me right now- it changes)
• have enough resources
• pay my debt off
• find my passion
• say no
• concentrate more - be more quiet - meditate every day
• quit procrastinating
• Have a more settled job situation
• quit procrastinating
• Help the folks I work with to relax. They are very excitable.
• outsource the more mundane aspects of operating my business
• stop fighting fires
• concentrate
• Develop more rigor about doing written project plans and setting fewer, more crisp objectives.
• If only I could be more fearless, I would be more focused. (Why I say this is because it's in chasing after business and potential "opportunities" that aren't custom tailored, a perfect fit, that mainly distracts me. If I can stay centered like a lighthouse beacon without fear of "missing out" on work than I can also stay focused.
• If I could only give a heck about my job, I would be more focused.
• I think I am already focused
• ...find time to move my organization to a rational multi-project pipeline process... or ...just say "No" or at least "Whoa" sometimes...
• "keep more organized and have a planned daily, weekly and monthly schedule"
• define what I really want in life more succinctly
• If only I could be bold, I would be focused.
• resist my temptations
• Delegate
• turn off the distractions (other people, irrelevant thoughts, other things to do)
• resolve which of my company's multiple foci is most important
• Just say "no" more often!
• get my boss to be more focused
• get half a day at a stretch without meetings
• Work from home nude
• Stop being human
• stop my boss from constantly interrupting with his fire drill of the minute
• have the time and support to figure out what I want to do
• just work on things I enjoy
• Be in a more functional organization, with clear goals that do not change every quarter.
• "Have a company strategic plan". We have strategic planning at the department level, but it needs to start from the top down. If the company's top leaders have more focus, others will have more focus. It all starts and ends there.
• "If only" wastes time and energy. Just do it.
• be rested and relaxed
• Work somewhere without people, phones, and email. It would be kinda lonely, though.
• Turn off the phone.
• stop procrastinating
• Understand and stay aligned with the organization's strategy

Comments

[An engineer turned into a manager]

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