Fireflies are known for their blinking lights, with different species having distinct flashing patterns. Like fireflies flickering in different patterns, in different places, how you focus can be shaped by where you are.
There are different ways you might be focusing:
Broad Focus is when you are focusing on doing many different things (a few examples):
-Being naturally curious and having diverse interests
-Moving through many changes and transitions
-Expanding your social circle
-Helping others with various tasks
Narrow Focus is when you are focusing more than ever on specific things (a few examples):
-Taking a break after a very busy period in life
-Focusing on fewer things to make life less complicated and more manageable
-Reflecting to avoid feeling burnt out again after feeling overwhelmed in the past
-Being deeply passionate about something and wanting to devote as much time and energy to it as possible
So, the next time you start feeling pressure around the concept of focusing, take a moment to pause and start with a question. “Where am I?” Consider where you are. Is it a time for broad exploration, narrow concentration, or both? If both, in which areas of your life does each approach apply?
May the fireflies remind you of the many ways of shining and focusing light.
Here’s to more noticing, less proving. There will be a time for a focus that is more scattered and a time for a focus that is more concentrated. May the blinking path of fireflies remind you there’s room for both.
– Morgan Harper Nichols
