One of my most eye opening experiences took place recently in Panama City.
I was on holiday there with my girlfriend…
And we were travelling in an Uber to our Airbnb.
My phone showed we were five mins away from our destination…
And I looked out the window.
Planks of wood were hanging from shacks which lined the side of the road.
Some of the windows were boarded up. Others had grilles on them.
A couple of stray dogs ran alongside us.
I glanced at my girlfriend and could see her restlessly crossing and uncrossing her legs.
I spotted a burnt out car half-mounted on the pavement.
Up ahead a child in rags was kicking a football against a graffiti covered wall.
The poverty was obvious. And it was sobering.
I looked back at my phone.
Only three minutes away from the Airbnb.
Then the Uber turned a corner…
And suddenly everything changed.
Ahead of us were whitewashed walls and palm trees.
The colonial architecture was stunning.
A girl with a New York Yankees cap skipped along, slurping on an ice-cream.
A neon sign was fizzing with electricity: “Happy Hour: 241 Margaritas”.
And the street was buzzing with tourists.
I couldn’t believe it.
The change was instant. And it was extreme.
And in that moment I realised…
I could’ve stood at one single point…
Looked one way…
And all I would’ve seen was poverty.
But from the same point I could’ve looked the other way…
And seen one of the most charming city centres I’d ever visited.
The only difference was the direction I was facing.
In other words…
One small change in perspective can make a radical difference to your view.
And this is key.
Because where we choose to focus our attention shapes our experience of life.
Shifting our focus can change our emotions…
Alter our goals…
And influence the action we take.
So it’s worth asking…
What are you focussing on right now?
Now, before I wrap this up I want to be 100% clear.
I’m not saying we should turn our backs on people less fortunate than us.
Far from it.
I don’t know exactly how this situation came about…
And clearly a whole part of the city has been badly let down.
However…
What I am saying is that even though our focus is pulled in different directions…
We still have the power to choose where we focus...
And this choice impacts how we live our lives.
My experience in Panama is a symbol for this. It’s what happens in our minds all the time.
Tony Robbins has a famous quote which says “where focus goes, energy flows”…
And I think that sums it up nicely.
Okay I better bring this to a close…
Have a good weekend.
- Tom