How to focus as a content creator
People say that 'time is your most valuable asset,' but I disagree.
Focus is your most valuable asset (because that is when you get things done and it is even more limited than time).
I don't talk about this much, but I struggle to focus.
Some years ago, I tested myself for ADHD.
I didn't receive a diagnosis, but I was told I "definitely have some kind of concentration difficulty".
Hearing this turned out to be one of the best things for my productivity and focus because it got me even more invested in the topic.
I started reading books and listening to podcasts on self-development, focus, sleep, file organization, and productivity. I knew that I'd have to work harder in these areas if I wanted my results to match the high ambitions I had in life.
One interesting study I came across was the one by Anders Ericsson where he suggests that most people can't do more than 4 hours of deep work in a day. This highlights the point of utilizing those few hours of deep focus every day on the things that matter.
So, this resulted in me creating (and implementing) systems, processes, and habits into my life to structure my days better for optimal focus and increased daily progress.
I became a "productivity nerd".
What I discovered about focus is that you need two types of focus to make progress towards an ambitious goal:
🔍 Micro focus - The practical daily habits and tactics that help you avoid distractions and get the most out of each day.
🧭 Macro focus - The long-term vision, strategies, and systems that keep you "on track" and help you persevere over time.
Think of it like driving a car. 🚙 Micro focus is about learning to drive safely and macro focus is about setting your GPS destination and keeping it in sight.
By mastering both, you can start enjoying the ride instead of feeling confused, stressed, and insecure.
Let's break them down individually and look at ways to improve both.
Let's start with macro focus because it is the most important one.
To know your direction and what road to take, you need to first know where you are heading. This is where you need a goal.
There's debate about whether you should have a clear goal or not and if you should share your goal publicly.
Critics argue that goals can create pressure and lead to disappointment if you don't reach it, and that sharing them can provide enough dopamine that it reduces the drive to achieve them.
My opinion is that you will move in some direction regardless, and that disappointment is almost guaranteed (at some point in your life) if you just follow the stream instead of being intentional with your life choices.
You don't actually need to reach your goal to be happy, you simply need a direction that aligns you closer to the life you want.
The part about dopamine I can understand (and I believe that the effect of public goals works differently for different people) but my experience is that the benefits outweigh the potential downsides. Sharing your goal can lead to opportunities you wouldn't get otherwise, so telling people about your goal is still a good decision (in my opinion).
What type of goal you want to set depends on you.
It can be a specific number you want to reach (like a certain amount of subscribers), a specific workplace you want to work at (like "Vayner Media" in New York, which was my goal for many years), or maybe a location you want to move to (like Barcelona or Las Vegas, for instance).
Lately, I've explored "lifestyle goals".
Instead of some distant finish line, "lifestyle goals" are the goals where you paint a picture of who you want to be and how you want your days to look like.
These can be more tangible because you can implement parts of it right away with daily practice. It is about upgrading your identity and overwrite your current self with your future self, one day at a time.
I created a personal "identity sheet" at the start of this year, for this specific purpose.
I prefer lifestyle goals because it helps me "be, do, become" (in that order). I am being the one I want to be (values), I do the things I need to do (actions), and thanks to that I become the person I want to be (transformation).
Values x Actions = Transformation
A common mistake is to do this in the opposite order.
You think that you have to become someone first, in order to do what they are doing, and then you can be that person and live that lifestyle.
You reach a goal by transforming yourself, not everyone else around you. Lead yourself first.
One crucial tip I would give, no matter what type of goal you decide to set for yourself, is to set a goal you are in control over that is based on input.
Good goals (within your control):
Upload videos weekly on YouTube
Exercise five times per week
Give a daily compliment
Avoid sleeping less than six hours for two consecutive days.
Bad goals (outside of your control):
Reach 100,000 subscribers (guilty! 😄)
Win a filmmaking award
Get 99% positive comments on my YouTube videos
Become 100 years old.
Once you have a goal (or goals), visualize it and expose yourself to it in as many places as you can.
Make it your computer background.
Make it your phone background.
Put it on your social media header (on your profile).
Print it and frame it on the wall.
Write it down on post-it-notes that you place on different spots around your house.
Tattoo it on your body.
(The last one might be extreme but you get the point.) 😉
It doesn't have to be word for word. It can also be an image that represents the goal. As long as YOU know what it stands for.
Once you have your goal, we can look at micro focus.
This is an agile process that will never be "finished".
The idea of creating a perfect, unchanging schedule is both naive and unrealistic.
The schedule will look different throughout different seasons of your life and you need to be prepared to adapt to each season.
But the first thing you do is to define your priorities.
Then establish systems that will help you focus on these priorities and work on them in a productive way.
Do this by planning and reflecting regularly.
Every month, plan the focus tasks for each week.
Every week, plan what days to do what tasks.
Every day, focus on your most important task during your personal energy peak (whenever that is, but preferable early in the day).
Document recurring tasks to streamline them into repeatable processes. Write down every step. This is your 1.0-process for that task.
Refine and improve these processes over time.
If you can batch work (like "record 5 videos at once" or "go through all e-mails at 4 PM each day") it will save you time.
Once you have repeatable processes, set them as recurring tasks in your calendar (and link to the process inside the calendar task).
The frequency of these tasks can be set to daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, the 1:st every month, the first Wednesday every month etc...
Over time, you will get a better sense of how much time is required for each task and this helps you become more accurate when planning (and the process will help you finish the task in the allocated timeframe).
The more you can fill up your calendar with recurring (and important) tasks, the less time you have to spend planning, because a majority of your schedule now looks the same, week after week.
This is why so many successful people have morning routines. ⏰
Not only do they benefit from daily habits that build toward larger goals, but they also reduce their decision-making each day, which saves them mental energy for more challenging tasks.
As you go through this and refine this, you will notice that your stress level will go down as you get better at it, because you will take back control over schedule, instead of your schedule controling you.
A lot of times, stress doesn't come from having a lot of things to do but from not knowing how much time each task will require.
You might work on just two (essential) tasks and feel accomplished by 3 PM, while someone else might tackle ten tasks and finish working at 9 PM and still feel stressed because the key tasks are still not done.
Productivity isn't about working more or faster, it is about being proactive, focus on the right things, and eliminate the things that doesn't matter for your long-term goal.
The next step, after all these things, is to start implementing all the daily productivity tactics we see on social media. Get up in time, work in sprints, work with headphones on, listen to instrumental music only, avoid multi-tasking, take regular breaks, turn off notifications, go on daily walks, move all your meetings to the afternoon, drink 20 cl water per hour, don't overeat...
The conclusion is this:
Start at the right end.
If you want to make more progress, start by defining your direction.
Then eliminate the tasks that doesn't move you in that direction.
Now form your schedule around the remaining tasks.
Then, you can start to systemize, and optimize.
Driving faster doesn't help you if you are on the wrong road, or driving in the wrong direction. Be clear on your direction, turn your big goals into daily habits, start before you are ready, and then be flexible with the methods and tactics you need to implement in order to get to where you want.
Learn and improve along the way.
The more you get to know yourself, the more people will get to know you.
If you are clear in your communication about who you are and where you are heading, it is easier to understand you and support you.
This will also help you attract like-minded people going in a similar direction.
I hope you liked this blog post!
Have a great day!
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