Maintain Forward Focus – Lessons from Mountain Biking #2

Today’s post is my second post in a series on lessons learned from mountain biking. In an earlier post I discussed the need to focus on where you want to go, to pick the path and focus on the “line” that you want to travel. Remember not to focus on all the obstacles you do not want to hit because they are irrelevant, you are not going to go there. Once you have practiced this skill you are ready for the next aspect of focus which is maintaining a forward focus.

When I started mountain biking I found that my focus was on where my tire was going now. I looked over the front of my handle bars and down at the ground directly in front of my tire to choose my line and steer into the clear path. To become an even more successful rider I had to learn to truly have a forward focus.

In mountain biking this means that you move your focal point forward so that you are looking ahead on the trail, selecting the path that you will travel in the next 5 to 15 seconds depending on your speed. You then let your well conditioned brain take charge to guide your body to take the right movements to take you there. This forward focus allows you to prepare for the trail ahead, to change your gears as necessary and to take appropriate coarse corrections as needed.

Think about your typical day. Are you focused on the interruptions and “emergencies” that pop up every day of our life? Do you feel as if you never have time to do what it is that you really want to do in your business? If you are then you are most likely focusing on the few inches right in front of your tire.

The challenge there fore is to force your focus further away from that front edge of your tire. This is something that takes time to make a new habit. You gradually move that focus further away from where you are right now. You can first focus on where you want to be at the end of the day, then where do you want to be at the end of the week, month, and year and so on. You have to allow yourself the opportunity to view your course of action and allow your mind to take you where you are focusing.

When you are going down a mountain trails that is only as wide as your shoulders at 25 to 30 miles per hour you do not have any other option than to move your focal point forward, and to trust your training and conditioning to take you where you want to go. Life is frequently moving much faster than a mountain biker so we have to push our focus further out if we are going to achieve Peak Achievement Today.