Sometimes, life “lifing” seems to demand all your attention. During such periods, it’s easy to feel distracted, overwhelmed, and resistant to doing things you want or need to do. Turning your attention away from whatever circumstances surround you feels almost impossible.
At times like these, life gets in the way of your life’s work. It may also get in the way of your busy work, work-work, health, relationships, and, of course, peace of mind.
And that’s a shame.
When you don’t accomplish what needs to be done each day, you end up feeling more overwhelmed, anxious, and weighed down by life. You get behind. People pressure you. You pressure yourself.
When you don’t pay enough attention to the things you deem important, like health, relationships, and emotional well-being, you end up sick, alone, and depressed or anxious. Then, it becomes more challenging to accomplish your goals or create what matters to you.
It’s a vicious cycle.
Pay too much attention to life, and life becomes more challenging. Don’t pay enough attention to life, and life becomes more challenging.
My Distracted Days
I know this as well as anyone else. Even as a Certified High Performance Coach, I, too, find life is sometimes more interesting—or concerning—than what is right in front of me, like items on my to-do list, exercise routine, or marriage. And when I don’t find a way to focus on what needs my attention, I get stressed, unhappy, and unhealthy. That makes it all the more difficult to get sh*t done and focus on what’s truly important personally or professionally.
Between current issues in the U.S., a death in the family, and a loved one’s struggles, I have recently spent too much time procrastinating. I endlessly scroll through Facebook and Instagram or visit CNN’s website or my email box. I watch a lot of orphan baby elephant videos, too.
Rather than making me feel better, this makes me feel worse.
These activities leave me depressed, fearful, and angry…and behind on just about everything. And, in this emotional state, it’s harder for me to focus on creating things that are important to me.
I know better.
And when you know better, you can choose to do better.
That’s what I try to do…and often succeed. So, I thought I’d share my simple tips, trusting they will help you stop focusing on life lifing and get back to creating what really matters to you.
4 Tips to Help You Stop Focusing on Life Lifing
Let me preface these four tips by saying that these tips are not new or unique. But they work, which is why they are often shared.
I use them. I’m proof they work.
In fact, this blog post is proof. I was procrastinating and focusing on all the ways life is lifing right now. Then, I put these tips to use and, voilà! I wrote and published this post.
Tip #1: Get off the Internet (and standard or social media)!
All news, social media, and other ways of keeping tabs on what is happening in your community, country, or world must be ignored. They make you feel you must keep tabs on what’s happening constantly.
It’s just not true. And these mediums are just not helpful.
You can check in at designated times and for specific periods. For example, decide to watch the news or scroll Facebook for 30 minutes per day. Choose a time block; only turn on the television or open social media during that time. And set an alarm; when it rings, get off!
I’d include in this tip staying away from virtual tools most of the day. That means texts and emails as well.
Tip #2: Focus on the things you believe are important!
If you utilize Tip #1, you now have a lot of time to do what needs doing! You can spend the rest of your day on things you feel are essential. This can include your life’s work, health and fitness, friends and family, hobbies, or job.
Block time on your calendar for these activities. Treat them as actual commitments, like doctor appointments, and show up for them.
Focus on what is important during your block time. That’s where you want to place your attention.
That doesn’t mean life lifing isn’t important. Many things that happen in your world are, indeed, important. But focusing on them with worry, stress, and despair does nothing to change them. In fact, you can help more by feeling positive, energized, and hopeful.
Tips #3: Don’t stop until you are done!
Whatever activity or task you choose to tackle, do it until completion. I realize some things can’t be done in one sitting or time block. However, you can focus on that project over a week, month, or more—until it is done.
Don’t get distracted. Come back to what matters to you, and create that. Take the actions that help you create what matters to you…over and over again…until it becomes a reality.
Each time block you schedule for meaningful activities serves as an opportunity for you to focus on something that matters to you rather than on life lifing.
And focus you must!
That means you don’t go to see what email just came in or if someone commented on your latest Facebook, Instagram, or Bluesky post—while you are supposed to be focused on something you claim is important to you. Those things are put off until you have finished a task or focused for the allotted period of your time block.
Tips #4: Change your state!
Tony Robbins is famous for saying that changing your state alters your mindset and actions. Indeed, change your emotional, mental, and physical state (or even one of these), and you find it easier to shift your focus from life lifing to whatever you feel needs your attention.
Change your physical state with physical movement or breathing exercises. The same tools work to alter your emotional or mental state—move your body! Breath deeply! You can also meditate or read something inspirational or motivational.
Whatever it takes, change your state. Then, turn your attention to what matters to you, and you’ll find it easier to ignore current circumstances.
It’s Not About Motivation or Inspiration
I often talk about motivation and inspiration. But when life life’s and seems to demand your attention, getting sh*t done personally and professionally is all about brute force.
What I mean is that focusing your attention on something other than conditions and circumstances requires you to mentally, emotionally, and energetically choose to place your attention elsewhere—and follow through on that decision.
For that to happen, you need to three things: commitment, self-integrity, and discipline.
Commit to focusing on something other than what is happening around you. Be self-integral; keep your promises to yourself about focusing and taking action in the time you block for important tasks or projects. And develop the discipline to carry through on your commitments and promises.
Self-integrity increases with discipline. Discipline forces you to develop a specific behavior, like keeping a promise to yourself. Both self-integrity and self-discipline lead to the ability to keep your commitments.
If you want to stop focusing on life lifing, apply these tips. You’ll find yourself focusing on the things that matter to you instead.
How do you stop focusing on life lifing? Tell me in a comment below. And please share this post with those who might benefit from reading it.
If you want more strategies for focusing on what matters to you, join the Inspired Creator Community. The doors are open now (February 2025), but won’t open again for six months. Grab your spot (and bonuses) now. Click here to watch the replays of the “Create What Matters to You Masterclass” (available until 2/27/25). You’ll receive many more tips and discover more about the Inspired Creator Community on that same page.
It’s time to get inspired…in-spirit…and create what really matters to you, is it not? Join the Inspired Creator Community. You probably already realize that you need to change from the inside out. That’s how you become a person who does the things that allow you to create your desires. As a member, you get access to intuitive transformational coaching, world-class personal growth coaching, and strategies for living a life that feeds your soul. And you will discover that you are a powerful creator able to create what you want (not what you don’t want). Join now!
