What is FocusonWIN?

Many people ask me, "What is FocusonWIN?"  What does it mean and why is it something that I've had as an email address for so long?  To answer that question, I’m going to do something rather unconventional.  I am going to ask you a few questions.  What is important to you in life?  What do you need to focus on to get there?  Who or what do you need to reach it?  And, are you on the pathway to getting there?  I know – I know.  You are not on trial.  So why am I asking you all of these questions?  Simple.  To prove a point.  In our daily lives we are always moving.  We are either moving towards or away from goals that we have in our life.  Every “Slight Edge” ( a great book by Jeff Olson) decision we make, pulls us closer to or further from an outcome.  In the book, Jeff Olson refers to our need for instant gratification.  Remember the phrase, “an apple a day keeps…” – you know the rest?  Jim Rohn (motivational speaker) poses the following series of questions,

“what if that is true? And if it is, then why aren't more people doing it?  It’s because it is easy to do. In fact, all the easy things in life are easy to do.  The problem is that they are easy not to do, too.  That’s the catch”

Truer words may not have been spoken.  I mean truthfully, how difficult is it to eat an apple a day? Or, exercise for 15 minutes a day? Or read 10 pages of a good book?  Not very difficult, right?  In fact, most would agree that it’s easy to do.  Unfortunately, it’s easy not to do.  I might even challenge that a few of those are easier not to do.  So, in this day and age of instant gratification, why wouldn’t we go after things that provide an immediate result.  We are hungry for food, hit the drive thru.  We want to learn something, Google it.  Although I must admit, I am a bit fond of Google.  But, you know what I mean.  Every decision we make, has an undercurrent of ease and comfort for us.  As a species, we crave comfort.  That may be the reason why the success trail (which is challenging and often uncomfortable) is so empty and open.

Alright. Alright. Alright, I digress.  I know, I've ventured a long way off from the original question.  What is FocusonWIN? To better answer that, I need to refer back to my Sophomore year of high school.  My JV Football coach, Mark Reyna (shout out to you, if you’re reading this), took me with him to see Lou Holtz (ex Notre Dame Football Head Coach & current ESPN College Football Analyst) speak at the Pasadena Civic Center.  I never imagined that at the young age of 14 I would hear something that shaped the way that I see, live and approach life.  Anyways, Lou Holtz recanted tales of great successes and utter failures, all leading up to his finale.  In the last few minutes, he took out a newspaper page and showed it to the audience.  He starts by making a statement: “You’re not fast enough” , he folds the paper in half. “You’re not good enough”, he folds the paper in half again. “You should quit now”, folds the paper again. “You’re pretty good for being…”, another fold.  Finally, he has the newspaper down to the size of a postcard.  He pauses for a minute and then says: “You family doesn’t believe in your either”, he tears the paper in pieces. “You teammates are doubting you”, he tears it some more.  After a few more rounds of this, he is holding a small mound of torn up newspaper.  He looks out at the audience and in his thick southern accent says this:

“It’s never mattered what other people say, think or do to you.  What matters is what you say, think and do.  At the end of the day, the number one supporter of your vision needs to be you.  You may appear to be beaten and torn to others.  But, your mindset and work ethic can turn any situation around.” – Lou Holtz

With that, he grabs the corner of one of the newspaper pieces, shakes it violently, and the paper (like magic) is whole again with no tears at all.  The audience, as you can imagine, respond with a resounding ovation.  I was floored and completely hooked.  He finished his speech with this:

“In all places I’ve been and in all the things I've done, I've remembered one thing.  I've remembered to FocusonWIN.  Focus on What’s Important Now.  It’s all we can really commit to.  And, it’s made all the difference for me.” – Lou Holtz

So what is FocusonWIN? FocusonWIN, which stands for Focus on What’s Important Now, is a philosophy of life for me.  It’s a constant reminder to “keep the main thing, the main thing” -unknown.  It’s a singular word, phrase, thought that completely centers me on a feeling of potential accomplishment.  And, now that you've read this, I hope that it will be the same for you.