Buffett was Focused

When Bill Gates and Warren Buffett were asked for a single word to epitomize their careers they both said 'Focused.'

Warren went on to say that "The difference between successful people and very successful people is that very successful people say 'no' to almost everything...Saying 'no' frees you up to say yes when it matters most....And that's what gives you the time to accomplish so much."  I often find myself saying 'yes' and trying to do too much, then I run out of time or create undo stress.  It ends up impacting my relationships and my sleep.  I need to say 'no' more often.

From my perspective, success in life begins and ends with focusing on oneself.  If your body and mind aren't healthy you can't do what you want to.  You can't help those you want to help or fully engage in personal tasks.  Warren often said, "Who's your most valuable client?  Usually yourself, therefore sell yourself 1 hour each day."  He believed that if you don't intentionally make time for yourself, life will consume you.  When preaching to shareholders or students, Warren asked them to "Imagine that a genie in a bottle offered you any car in the world at age 16 yo.  The only caveat was that it would be your only car for the rest of your life.  How would you treat it?"  Would you regularly change the oil, rotate tires, have an expert examine it, or research proper car care?  Sometimes I get caught up in life, running my engine at 100% pushing away red flags hoping I can sustain my pace without breaking down.  I need to listen to those flags and make small adjustments to break that cycle.

Another Buffett epigram was "Be careful of looking for a gold needle in a haystack of gold."  He knew himself and he knew his niche.  He did not invest in companies he did not understand.  Gates encouraged him to invest in Intel during the early 1990s, but he held to his maxims and declined.  He would not give up that level of safety.  Likewise, as an adolescent he was not particularly athletic or sociable, but he had an aptitude for business.  Instead of following others, Warren focused on becoming the richest man in the world.  He sold used golf balls, he delivered newspapers, and he contracted with local barbershops to place pinball machines in their stores.  As a young adult, he attended a Dale Carnegie workshop to improve his public speak.  Albeit, it took him two times to actually work up the courage to attend.  Never the less, he was careful and focused on the long term.

The difference I see in myself is a lack of long term focus.  I have goals and ideas, but I often fail to implement them.  I think I get caught up in day to day issues and focus on the short term.  I rationalize that my long term goals are not possible right now. Tiffany thinks it boils down to fear.  She says I don't need a detailed road map to take that first step.  I just need faith and the perspective that failure is never final.  My new goal is to get back to writing out a weekly schedule that can help me implement long term goals.