Is your mind wandering when working or studying? Then, this article is for you! Focus is an essential ingredient for productivity, regardless of your goal. Without it, it is impossible to make progress. That's why we have prepared a collection of focus quotes below, reminding us why it is worth the effort to hone this life skill. So let's work on our goals with eagle's eyes!
While it can be hard to concentrate on any one thing for an extended period, with practice, we can master it. Fortunately, many wise and practical words from motivational speakers, athletes, investors, and business people can help us retain it. Hone your focus skills as you read the quotes below.
Quick links to our selection of focus quotes:
Focusing too much on one thing can become exhausting and cause our brain circuits to overwork, leading to an inability to process information accurately. Therefore, focusing and unfocusing are critical to ensure our brain prevents mental fatigue.
One way to recharge is to take breaks throughout the day. Additionally, engaging in activities that allow us to focus on something other than the task at hand can be beneficial.
For example, reading a book, going for a walk, connecting with nature, and other low-key activities can reduce the amount of stress in our brains1. Focusing and unfocusing will also develop our resilience, creativity, and decision-making.
After completing a task, unwind by reading the focus quotes below.
"Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it."
"Success demands singleness of purpose ."
"I'll live the focused life, because it's the best kind there is."
"Energy is the essence of life. Every day you decide how you're going to use it by knowing what you want and what it takes to reach that goal, and by maintaining focus."
"Focus more on your desire than on your doubt, and the dream will take care of itself."
"Concentration can be cultivated. One can learn to exercise willpower, discipline one's body and train one's mind."
"Discovering what you really want saves you endless confusion and wasted energy."
"Our focus is our future, and what we focus on will multiply in our life."
Focus on the positive! That might sound invalidating, but we should always try to go back to thinking positively after processing any information and emotions we have. Whether the reality is good or bad, we should reframe our mindset and focus on potential solutions and things we can control.
It might be challenging, but when we master a positive attitude, our future selves will thank us. Why? Researchers found that focusing on the positive can help us be less likely to experience memory decline2. While another study found that optimism can aid cardiovascular health3, and improve blood sugar levels.
Put your full attention to where it matters as you read the next set of focus quotes.
"Live life to the fullest, and focus on the positive."
"Instead of focusing on that circumstances that you cannot change – focus strongly and powerfully on the circumstances that you can."
"Whether you're 9 or 90, stop trying to fix the things you're bad at, and focus on the things you're good at."
"A negative focus can result in our entirely missing the possibilities placed in our path."
"It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light."
"Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward, toward finding the answer."
"What you focus on grows."
"Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps they need to take to get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than all the other distractions that life presents to them."
"It is wise to direct your anger towards problems – not people; to focus your energies on answers – not excuses."
One of the evident distractions in the workplace is technology, such as smartphones, tablets, and computers. Technology can be an excellent tool for getting work done but can also be a distraction when misused.
Unfortunately, 48% of Americans consider themselves addicted to digital devices, based on a 2022 survey by Statista. Being tempted by notifications and getting rewarded with a funny video, a like, or a retweet traps us in a dopamine loop. To break this cycle, first, we can modify the notification settings on our devices. We can set time blocks to check our phones and put our gadgets out of reach during work hours.
Further, it can be challenging to differentiate between being easily distracted and a mental health issue like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD. What's more, the typical external causes of lack of focus, like distractions, tiredness, or lack of motivation, could be mistaken as ADHD by untrained eyes.
But, in fact, inattention is only one symptom of the disorder. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) said that about 2.5 percent of adults and 8.4 percent of children in the United States have it. Therefore, seeking help from mental health professionals as early as possible is crucial to determine the best course of action.
Gadgets, food, people, whatever distracts you, be aware of it and make efforts to manage it. Start by getting insights from our focus quotes below.
"Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hour days."
"Focus on being productive instead of busy."
"You can’t do big things if you’re distracted by small things."
"Say ‘no’ to distraction so you can say ‘yes’ to your destiny."
"Focus means eliminating distractions, not just from other people, but the things we do to distract ourselves."
"Prioritizing sharpens your vision so you can focus on the most important things."
"Too much sugar leads to a heavy body, and too many distractions lead to a heavy mind."
"Sometimes success is 3% brains and 97% not getting distracted by the Internet."
"The only thing that can grow is the thing you give energy to."
"To focus means to bring your attention to the center, to concentrate on one thing intently in order to gain clarity."
"Where focus goes, energy flows. And if you don't take the time to focus on what matters, then you're living a life of someone else's design."
"We get what we motionally focus on! Focus on what we want with passion and excitement , and presto! It's on its way."
"Concentrate on what you do want rather than what you don't."
The ability to stay focused and motivated is often the difference between success and failure. By committing to practicing deep work, we can improve our ability to focus and reach our goals.
The deep work concept is a brainchild of Cal Newport, born in his 2012 blog post that became the 2016 bestselling book Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World (available here on Amazon).
Newport's book gave actionable plans to readers, which he laid out in four rules:
In a nutshell, the method pertains to activities requiring intense concentration without distractions or multitasking, which results in higher productivity. After getting inspiration from our focus quotes below, dive deeper into Newport's method.
"Success isn’t magic or hocus-pocus. It’s simply learning how to focus."
"A clear vision, backed by definite plans, gives you a tremendous feeling of confidence and personal power."
"I don't care how much power, brilliance or energy you have, if you don't harness it and focus it on a specific target, and hold it there you're never going to accomplish as much as your ability warrants."
"Organize as much as possible around teams, to achieve enhanced focus, task orientation, innovativeness, and individual commitment."
"Life is short. Focus from this day forward on making a difference."
"Most people have no idea of the giant capacity we can immediately command when we focus all of our resources on mastering a single area of our lives."
"Along with a strong belief in your own inner voice, you also need laser-like focus combined with unwavering determination."
"It is those who concentrate on but one thing at a time who advance in this world. The great man or woman is the one who never steps outside his or her specialty or foolishly dissipates his or her individuality."
"I can accept failure; everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying."
~ Michael Jordan.
Michael Jordan is an excellent example of how focus can lead to success. Throughout his career, he lost 300 games and missed nearly 9000 shots, including 26 game-winning throws. Yet, despite that, his mindset towards failure and his focus on what is essential led him to become the legendary basketball player known to every man on earth.
After being moved by the focus quotes from other successful people below, discover and learn from their life experiences.
"Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun's rays do not burn until brought to a focus."
"You only have to do a very few things right in your life so long as you don't do too many things wrong."
"Focus like a laser, not a flashlight."
"Doing acts of mercy gets me out of myself. It gets my focus off of me and onto other people."
"I learned that focus is key. Not just in your running a company, but in your personal life as well."
"Take five minutes to center yourself in the morning - set your intention every day."
"You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks."
"Always remember, your focus determines your reality."
"That's been one of my mantras - focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains."
"Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. And it will leave you unfulfilled."
"Listening is active. At its most basic level, it's about focus, paying attention."
"The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus."
| 1 | Long, J., Xie, Q., Ma, Q. et al. Distinct Interactions between Fronto-Parietal and Default Mode Networks in Impaired Consciousness. Sci Rep 6, 38866 (2016). |
| 2 | Hittner, E. F., Stephens, J. E., Turiano, N. A., Gerstorf, D., Lachman, M. E., & Haase, C. M. (2020). Positive Affect Is Associated With Less Memory Decline: Evidence From a 9-Year Longitudinal Study. Psychological Science, 31(11), 1386–1395. |
| 3 | Hernandez R, Kershaw KN, Siddique J, Boehm JK, Kubzansky LD, Diez-Roux A, Ning H, Lloyd-Jones DM. Optimism and Cardiovascular Health: Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). Health Behav Policy Rev. 2015 Jan;2(1):62-73. |
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