Our focus determines more than we think it does.
When we think about our focus, it’s as if it’s a laser. Imagine that your mind is like a ray gun from a science fiction show. Like this gun, we have full control of what we point at and what we can zap.
Our minds can be like blank slates at times when we’re not focused on anything in particular. Other times, we direct our focus on certain thoughts, often without appreciating how powerful our mental focus is when we direct our attentions to them. When we focus on something such as politics, all we tend to see are things of a political bent. When we focus our attention on what we perceive as wrong with the world, we will see examples of those things everywhere.
Close your eyes for about 5 seconds, and decide you’re going to look around the room for the color red (or any other color). Open them and seek out that color. Notice how much of that color tends to stand out to you. This shows the vast power of our mental focus on a small scale.
Seek out the positives as best as you can.
Now apply that focus toward positive aspects. Look for instances of kindness and other positives in your environment. You will come to see more of them, as you have a greater amount of focus on those positives. Of course, just because you decide to focus on positives doesn’t mean that you won’t run into negative things, or that they’ll just disappear because you’re somehow blocking that out. This isn’t a magic Law of Attraction voodoo trick. This is a mental tool in your toolbox that you can use to place a greater amount of emphasis on the positive parts of your environment that may have been always there, but didn’t notice before, as your focus was not attuned to them.
As I mentioned, focusing your thoughts isn’t magic, and it will take effort, especially when you’re used to focusing on the more negative parts of life, but it’s worth every ounce. The power of focus is something that you need to experience to genuinely appreciate, and when you see the effects for yourself, you’ll find the value in putting this into practical use in your life.
It has been said that “Energy goes where attention flows”. The same principle applies here. Give the attention to the good parts of life, and you’ll find a shift in your focus and mental state. And of course, the reverse of this is true as well.
Be mindful of what you focus on. The effort and resulting rewards are worth it.