Don't Be a Jack

Written on 6:56 PM by O

One of the trends I see taking hold in society today more than ever is the “busy-body”, or “do a whole lot of things averagely” trend. During my college years, I was guilty of trying to drive on overload. I was that student that wanted to be a part of every organization that was recognized on campus as an elite organization. I took every opportunity I was given to join whatever club there was that would serve to ‘boost my resume’. I spent Saturdays giving tours to prospective students or volunteering at a good-will organization, weekdays at meetings and weeknights at more meetings and events. While the things I did were good, I wonder today how much of an impact I would have had if I unleashed all my potential on one or two good things.

Napoleon Hill touches on this in his book, Think and Grow Rich. He explains that the art of focusing your energies on a particular endeavor is one of the driving forces that allows people to find answers to the hardest questions. The clutter created by floating thoughts about various different things hinders the clarity of mind in which bright imaginations come to life. The same principle can be applied to action. When there are too many projects going on at one time, the sheer pressure of finishing all of them can be overwhelming. Sometimes, this feeling cripples a person to the point that no action is taken at all. It’s a little like that old familiar feeling of having to clean a cluttered room; there just isn’t a logical starting point and you don’t want to start because it may never end.

Now, not too far removed from my college days, I understand the very sad reality for a Jack of all trades. Not only is this poor kid not excellent at anything, there is also the unfortunate truth that the dilution of his potential could have cost the world something great. Someone probably would have come up with flight if the Wright brothers didn’t but there’s also the chance that the technology would not be this advanced if they weren’t obsessed with the idea at the time that they were. What if they got side-tracked by other projects and decided not to spend as much time as they did exploring the impossible? And what if they didn’t do it and the next person who could think like them was born 50 years later? They would have robbed a generation of people of the luxury to cross seas within hours.

So, in order to focus my energies on just one or two projects at a time, I have learned to say ‘No’ to other shiny objects. I can see them glitter in my rear-view mirror once in a while and the attraction of how beneficial they are remains there, but I’m convinced that ignoring them for a while will allow me to give them full attention at a later time.