"Singularly Focused"

About a year ago I had a HUGE EPIPHANY!  Naturally,  I was watching Oprah when the amazing AH HA MOMENT occurred.   Oprah was interviewing  Paula Dean in her home.  As they shared a meal around Paula’s table, they were each discussing their paths to stardom/greatness.  Suddenly, one of them said the words:  “Singularly Focused” and I ABOUT FELL  OUT OF BED AND IMMEDIATELY RUSHED FOR A PEN AND PAPER SO I COULD WRITE DOWN THAT TWO WORD GEM!!!!!!!!!

What WAS  it about those words that soooo moved me (both figuratively AND literally)?

Here goes:  What they were talking about was each of them having been ‘singularly focused’ on their careers to the exclusion of friends, family, other opportunities, relationships, etc.  They said that they KNEW  FOR SURE  they missed out on some of those things in their lives in pursuit of their goals and ultimately their life’s purposes.

This concept COMPLETELY resonated with me because it was EXACLTY what I had been doing for the past 25 years as a stay at home mom.  I was now able to put a name to my feelings as a result of  my being singularly focused on my children.

This was BIG because, up until that moment, I had been battling with feelings such as 1.  Why don’t I spend more time with my friends?  2.  Why do I feel disconnected from my husband?  3.  Why can’t I seem to do more each day? 

Discovering this idea/concept/term/notion has helped me do two things:  1.  Stop beating myself up for feelings of failure 2.  To understand that I can dial down the laser point focus on my children and balance that life’s purpose with other aspects of my life such as my husband, my health and fitness, my friendships and more.

I guess you could say that this insight is a cautionary tale.  If YOU would’ve leaped out of YOUR bed upon hearing that term, then I would encourage you to consider  striking a balance between your life’s purpose and everything else!