Attention has become a scarce and valuable resource of our modern age. Marketers search everywhere to see what keeps our attention and then they message us to buy what they are selling. Marketers view grabbing our attention as being valuable.
Normally things that have our attention are important to us. Our phones have become important to us as they have our attention. My parents loved their newspaper which held their attention each day.
Why is it that we don’t value our attention as highly as marketers? Marketers spend days, months, years tracking us, figuring out what we watch, read, buy so that they can find a way to connect with us for their own good.
We get up each morning and off we go. There is never any time spent to decide what to pay attention to. This becomes a real problem when you are trying to build a life that evolves, becomes expansive, and brings new things into our lives.
All of us talk a good game. We are going to do this or that. If only we stepped back to see what we pay attention to —— to see how little we will accomplish.
It’s confusing when deciding what we should pay attention to for us to accomplish anything. There are two parts to these decisions: what should I pay attention to and is what I am focused on the best things to be paying attention to. Figuring out what to pay attention to is the first step. As time allows for learning and context, the best things to be watching will become evident.
Our attention is a limited resource. Probably the most valuable resource we have next to our health and our energy. We foolishly scatter our attention because the thrill of distraction trumps the discipline of a patient focus on things that will matter most in the long term.
Gather yourself today. Block out time for using your attention on important things that will help you the most. It may be your health. Or your most important relationship. Or your greatest responsibility.