Three words - Part IV

Read from Part I

Right after I wrote the last post I left for a week-long visit with my Michigan family. I brought my computer with every intention of finishing this series within a few days. But having lost the momentum and being distracted by the rest of my life, here it sits unfinished a month later.

Sure, I'm busy. I'm in the midst of changing jobs, have been on a long business trip and am trying to keep up with lots of stuff. But I have also wasted a lot of time during the last four weeks. I could surely have taken an hour or two to sit and write. I'm only here now because of a combination of insomnia and a lack of new content (since late last night) on my favorite web sites.

Immediately surrounding me at this moment are reminders of at least 10 other things I need to do...bills to pay, meetings to schedule, emails to send, papers to file, plants to water, dishes to wash. And I just thought of something I want to take on next week's business trip. If I don't get up right now and put it near my suitcase I might not remember it later.* But if I get up right now and put it near my suitcase I am likely to get distracted by something else on the way back to my desk. And I just finished my coffee and want to make more. And I'm hungry. And my feet are cold.

It is taking every ounce of determination I have to stay in my chair right now. How the hell am I ever going to have even a fraction of the focus I admire in those MMA fighters?

An article in this month's Discover Magazine gives me some answers. The article reports the results of studies comparing the brains of athletes and non-athletes. Athlete's brains just seem to function more efficiently. But it is not just a matter of genetics:

Good genes may account for some of the differences in ability, but even the most genetically well-endowed prodigy clearly needs practice—lots of it—to develop the brain of an athlete. As soon as someone starts to practice a new sport, his brain begins to change, and the changes continue for years. Scientists at the University of Regensburg in Germany documented the process by scanning people as they learned how to juggle. After a week, the jugglers were already developing extra gray matter in some brain areas. Their brains continued to change for months, the scientists found.

How do I become that which I admire? The answer is practice. By staying in my chair until I finish this post, I am training my brain. I am developing my ability to focus by focusing. I am developing self-discipline by practicing self-discipline, one task at a time. The more I do it, the more natural it will become.

Will I ever reach the level of achievement in my chosen pursuits as these athletes have in theirs? I don't know. But I definitely won't if I cannot achieve small victories, like finishing this post. Even if I were the most gifted, inspirational blog writer in the world, it means nothing if I never get to the point of pushing the "Publish" button.

This weekend I'll be watching WEC 48. Don't know where yet, but I wouldn't miss it. Because I love these guys. I love them for their brains...their focused, passionate, excellent brains.


*The item was a nightlight, and it's been placed in my suitcase. And now I can make my coffee.