Just Beside The Dot
Counterintuitive strategy.
Instead of focusing on an explicit goal based on achieving a specific outcome, one flips the focus into an implicit goal based on establishing a specific process.
An explicit goal like being a millionaire by 30 in this case, could be turned into a daily practice of saving 10% of income, investing consistently, and learning one new financial skill every quarter.
I personally prefer having an anchor of sorts that would serve as a target, as in when throwing a dart and aiming for that precision right on the dot.
This usually comes from trying to combine clarity(right on the dot) and simplicity(target is clearly visible) without getting too much entangled into the weeds of the process.
I recently learnt that process-focused goals create less anxiety because it's evident that you control the inputs as opposed to timing for perfect conditions such as lucky breaks to align in your favor.
With implicit goals, the attending conflict is much if not all of work needed to reach that goal fully rest on one's shoulder.
I can't expect my boss to promote me or clients to magically appear on my digital doorstep when the daily disciplines that create opportunities are entirely my responsibility.
On the flip side, this actually increases personal agency, which I would much prefer over viewing myself as a leaf caught in the wind, so to speak.
There's also an authentic and sustainable aspect of such process-driven approaches since they align with who you're becoming rather than what you're trying to extract from the world.
The age-old saying is the journey matters more than the destination, which is all well and true when you’re building habits that shape your character and capabilities over time.
Boredom Cultivation
Deliberately seek out mundane, unstimulating activities to strengthen your attention span and reduce dopamine dependency in an overstimulated world.
This may not be entirely counterintuitive since there's much talk about mindfulness and slowing down as it is already.
Experientially, unstimulating activities don't necessarily strengthen one's attention span when they're done for the sake of doing it or rather with little to no self-awareness. Hence, the deliberation is needed.
When low on energy, I sometimes view it as just passing the time while waiting for a specific occasion to begin.
Say meeting starts at 12pm, I'm there by 11:36, spend the time before that tracing all the objects my eyes can see at the horizon, cars, people, buildings, etc.
Nothing was strengthened in terms of attention with that experience.
However, had I chosen to focus intentionally on one object, like a single car, and observed every detail such as its color, shape, movement, etc. with full presence, I would have trained my mind to stay engaged without needing constant stimulation.
A deliberate practice of boredom is a process, much like implicit goals, where the power lies in controlling the input: my attention.
I've noticed as of late that my attention is less grounded, all over the place looking for nothing but just curious about everything that's happening.
Thanks for reading!! Share your thoughts below on the comments.