Friday, October 8, 2010

Stay focussed


There is a story in the Mahabaratha about Drona, the teacher of all forms of warfare. He was teaching his students on the principles of archery. He called out his first student and asked him to arm the bow and prepare to shoot a distant target in the form of a toy bird. The objective was to hit the birds eye.

To each student, his simple question, before the arrow was released, was "What do you see?". Each student said things like "I see you Sir and my fellow students, I see the sky, the trees, the bird etc." Only Arjuna, who later became a very accomplished and expert archer, said "I see only the birds eye".

The teacher used this as an example with his students to explain the importance of focus. In order to be successful and accomplish ones goals, one has to have the same intensity of Arjuna. When one is distracted by other things, it is easy to miss the target.

Staying focussed is easier said than done especially when the mind is so fickle and there are so many distractions around. Yet, champions have a special ability to de-focus from the distractions and concentrate on the core objective. Imagine a Vishwanathan Anand playing chess or a Sachin Tendulkar batting and you will realise the importance of focus.

One may be playing multiple roles in life or having multiple interests For example, one may be a student and also be a sportsperson & a budding musician. In order to be successful, one has to forget the other interests while pursuing or practicing each of these disciplines. If such a focus is achieved, one can scale great heights.

What does this have to do in a blogspot of values? Even while pursuing values, one has to have the same level of concentration, a single minded purpose and commitment in order to ensure that there are no slip ups in the journey. Being focussed on ones objective and goal is the sure way to be successful in life.

5 comments:

lakshmi said...

yes being focussed is the best way to achieve success...but like you said it is easier said than done.....but not impossible.

Rakesh Vanamali said...

Wonderful post Sir, as always!

Being focussed not only helps achieve what needs to be, but also helps bring out the best in oneself! I am on the firm belief that focus alone takes us to the next level of learning and maturity! With focus comes maturity, dedication, commitment and finally results!

Sonal Raisinghani said...

Perfectly said Sir..Your posts are superb :-)

When you know exactly what is important to you; you learn to be simply Happy.

Values are things you strive for in your life and they guide you in everything you do.

Having identified your values it is easier to establish and reach your goals.

You need to stay focused on your values, determine your goals keeping them in your mind.

Setting goals in life provides you with a roadmap to achieve things that are important to you.

Reaching there is a fulfilling and satisfying experience. It gives you motivation to move forward in life.

I would say let your values direct your path and your actions towards a better life.

Staying focused and true to your values and goals will pay of in the long run.

Ramakrishna said...

Sir, Its perfectly right, when I started to focus on a thing, I see some momentum in my ideas as well.

Anonymous said...

Focus is important for making improvements.When we focus our energy in what we want to do and if we are on the right track we will get to where we want to be..Follow your dreams,walk the journey and be amazed to see the results..

Without focus we will end up following someone else's map.Develop your map today,set your goals and focus..

Regards
Tyaagi