Clarity and focus are two important factors that play a part in your success. When you decide what you want out of life, you are able to fully pursue it with all of your passion and energy. Clarity and focus aren’t always things that come naturally to everyone, and it’s something we all struggle with from time to time. I first came across this article by Steve Pavlina on ways to gain clarity and I found it incredibly helpful. You can view the original article here.
These are the 5 tips that I have found the most helpful in gaining clarity from his article:
Assume responsibility for your own clarity.
You can’t wait for the moment for clarity to show up. You can’t wait for someone else to take on this responsibility. It is 100% up to you. As Steve says “clarity isn’t something that arrives from outside of you. Clarity isn’t a matter of luck either. Clarity is what you create for yourself. Clarity is a decision”.
Stop doing the opposite of clarity.
There are certain habits that people have that actually lead them in the opposite direction of clarity and focus. Steve suggests surrounding yourself with people who are in the same mindset as you, With goals, focus, and motivation to succeed. If you come across people whose goals and values aren’t in line with yours, it might be best to move on from them. Other tips include: eating a healthy, balanced diet and avoiding excessive junk food, alcohol, caffeine, or other addicting substances, avoid distracting yourself with mindless activities like excessive screen time and feed your mind with inspirational and motivational materials, and keep your goals at the forefront of your life. Revisit and evaluate them often.
Ask for help
Find someone who motivates and inspires you on your path and ask for their help. Most people are willing to help you so take advantage of it! Use counsellors, coaches, advice-givers, and anyone who inspires you. As much as friends and family want to support you, they aren’t always the best advice-givers. Sometimes an unbiased party is the way to go. These are all resources you can use to gain clarity in the path you’re taking, but it’s important to remember YOU are still responsible for your own journey to clarity. Regardless of the amount of support, advice, and encouragement you receive, no one else can create your path to clarity.
Put your goals in writing and review them daily.
This is something I have done for a long time, and while it is a proven habit of success, many people still struggle to remain consistent with it. Steve notes that as soon as you put something in writing it will boost your clarity towards that goal. And, each time you review it, you’ll gain more and more clarity.
Explore and experiment
It’s okay if you aren’t exactly clear on your goals. Sometimes, you need to explore and experiment with ideas to gain clarity in your goal setting. While writing a goal down can be helpful, sometimes you don’t always know what to do next until you actually get the ball rolling. Steve compares this to the work of a pilot – “a pilot has better visibility from the air than from the ground”. You’ll get better clarity and you get moving.”
Those were the 5 tips that I found most helpful for me. But if you’re looking for ways to gain more clarity in your life, in your goals, in your future, then I highly highly suggest checking out his full article here. It’s important to find clarity and focus in your life, to spend time being still and listening to your head and your heart, as they’ll show you exactly what you’re looking for. That moment when you find clarity is intense. You’ll suddenly see what is possible for your life, your future, for you.
