As an entrepreneur, this probably isn’t the first time you’ve heard about focus. You know how important focus is to success.
Your creative mind offers you hundreds of entrepreneur ideas to focus on. And with these thoughts comes the irresistible urge to stop, drop and roll into what appears to be best-idea-ever.
It’s one thing to know that you need to focus, but what do you do with all your brilliant ideas so that you can pursue the task at hand?
Park Your Ideas for Later
Ideas often come to us at less-than-convenient moments; in the middle of a conference call, at the grocery store or while working on a current project. Being able to successfully manage these thoughts will allow you to stay focused, while not losing a perfectly good idea to forgetfulness.
The Idea Parking Lot is a tool that I use often and it has saved me countless hours of chasing after new ideas and leaving my current project in the dust.
Because it is so valuable, the Idea Parking Lot has earned a coveted place in our Focus & Freedom™ Planner. If you are anything like me, your planner or a small notebook will always be in reach.
Having a specific place to store your fantastic ideas affords you a choice: A choice to write it down, a choice to use it later AND a choice to complete your current project.
Stay Focused
The important thing to remember once you’ve jotted down your ideas is to Keep on Track and continue to focus on your present project.
Unless you truly deem your project to be a dud and have the courage to dump it in the incinerator, maintain your momentum and focus on what you have in front of you and entertain those other great ideas after completion.
Not only does the Idea Parking Lot allow you the freedom to focus on your current project, but it also allows you time to consider all your entrepreneur ideas and to carefully select a project that works for you and your business, rather than just running with the first idea that comes bounding out of your thoughts.
I often think of entrepreneurs chasing ideas are like my favourite dog chasing birds. She runs towards a tree full of little thrushes “Oh bird! Oh bird! Oh bird!” and tries to catch them all at once.
She doesn’t stand a chance of catching anything. If she had the cat-like hunter instinct and simply picked one bird to focus on, her efforts would be far more successful. In the same way, we as entrepreneurs need to select one “bird” at a time to ensure success.
So, the next time you have the best-ever-idea landing in front of you like a little thrush, take out your pen and your favourite parking lot, write down the idea and continue with the best-ever project that you are working on at the moment. You’ll have captured that idea AND managed to stay focused.
As an entrepreneur, that’s something worth celebrating.
Interested in a Focus & Freedom™ Planner? Contact us and we’ll be happy to send one to you.