In the middle of the most torrential storms there is a calm spot, where the pressure is at its lowest.? Ironically, just outside the eye is where the winds are most fierce.? I suspect that the most successful entrepreneurs exist in that space, watching everything swirl around them, but somehow keeping their equilibrium.? Able to direct the action, but not be caught up in it.

In dance, there is a term called “spotting”.? When a dancer is turning quickly, they will pick a point and focus on it so that their body keeps turning but their head quickly snaps back to the same point.? Simply having a point of reference will keep them from becoming dizzy, because they will see that one point with clarity.? For years after I quit classical dance I had a recurring dream where I would do a series of turns — maybe 25, 30, 50 at a time.? I would experience the sensation in slow motion; a slow, floating swirl and a quick head snap back to the same place.? I never really knew why I had the dream until now.? I mistakenly thought it was about the movement, but in reality, the focus — the part that stays still — is what makes the movement successful.

As I’m trying to maintain things day to day, it is easy to get caught up in the whirlwind.? As I make the leap to self-employment, it will get even harder — yet even more critical — to find the calm in? the storm.

What do you do to maintain focus?? What helps you rise above the storm?