Pay Attention

In these times of instantaneous communication of the most mundane and useless bits of information…it’s easy to become distracted from the important things going on around you.  We’ve all become afflicted with Attention Deficit Disorder.

But the first of the three most important tasks of a leader is to expand their vision and Pay Attention…to Pay Attention to those things that enable you to stay in touch with your customers, to notice new trends, to watch for quantum changes around you. 

Too many managers…managers, not leaders…have tunnel vision that keeps their attention from straying outside their domain.  They become unable to notice what’s going on around them until it’s too late.  Think General Motors.  Once the undisputed King of Automobiles who was overtaken by those noticing changes in the world…and paying attention to how to take advantage of these changes.  Now General Motors is paying attention.

For if you Pay Attention with an open mind and the time to ponder and think, you come up with new ideas, new ways of operating, new products.  You continually Pay Attention to not only the world you oversee but the world you have no control over…and use this vision to forge ahead and reinvent as necessary.

Those ignoring the distractions and focusing on the important find that when they Pay Attention…and then act on what they notice…things get better.  Riding the wave becomes the norm.  Think Apple.