“Go-Go” Angie. 

That’s one of the many nicknames I’ve earned. 

I move … fast.  I love “new,” so much so that I often find myself in the throes of many exciting initiatives that do take their toll on my sanity.

I call it “The Curse of Capability.”  You share that curse too, don’t you? You know you can do anything, which is why you take on everything.

There’s a cost to the flurry, though.  Beyond ruining the sanity of others, it’s costing you your attention. Specifically, your inability to focus on what’s right in front of you.

I know. Believe me, I’m an expert on this subject. 

I’ve felt this cost of lost focus last week … big time. 

I had carved out a whole entire day to write. As soon as I sat down with my laptop, I was completely distracted by all the other things I could do with white space in my life: online shopping, ordering my son’s school supplies, researching winter vacation spots, deleting email from my inbox, paying bills.  

About 15 minutes into my “writing session,” I had to have a moment of self-confrontation: “Girl, what are you doing? You write about this! You speak about this. Get ahold of yourself.”

So, I made a vow right then and there to go to the home store and buy a meditation mat. Meditation is really the only thing that’s ever worked for me to reclaim my attention. When I got to the store, I couldn’t find exactly what I wanted, so I went to the pet section and found a dog mat – exactly what I needed!!

I then went home and organized my office to create a space where I could just “be.” And, guess what? 10 minutes (or 7 … depends on what I can tolerate) is doing the trick. 

I’m not a pro at this and I don’t aspire to be a breath guru. All I know is that if I set my timer, sit on my dog mat, close my eyes, and concentrate on my breath, in a few minutes it feels like my mind has had a factory reset. 

I’m sharing this with you because far too many people say “Oh, I can’t do that.” I promise you: you can sit on a dog mat for five minutes and close your eyes. What’s more, you can take the time to invest in your most precious resource: your mind.

You’re at the stage in your career where it’s not doing the work that’s going to get you further ahead – it’s how you think about the work that’s right in front of you, and how you’re able to focus on what’s most important in order to drive the important results in your life.

Let’s do this together. I double dog dare you: try to breathe. Let me know how it goes!

My best,