Finding Focus

I wrote a children’s book last month. This month I spent teaching stamp classes, studying magazine markets and starting a new freelance editing project. Next month I’ll be running a new book giveaway over at CCBR. None of this has anything to do with my nonfiction book proposals. Three months pass and I’m not a single step closer to my goal.

Before our vacation one of my writing groups held a discussion about branding, setting a distinct way for people to remember you and what you do. People naturally brand, so the idea is to brand yourself before others give one to you. If you want to be known as a suspense novelist, write great books to earn you that title. Parenting books won’t do the trick. If you want to be known as a missions advocate, speak about your passion, and I don’t mean your baseball card collection. Once people categorize you, it’s difficult to alter their perceptions.

Personally, I wish I had convinced Sunday school workers my son is assertive and passionate before they labeled him as difficult and aggressive. It’s not lying or changing the facts, just putting a positive light on them. We admire assertive and passionate adults. Those same traits in a two-year-old, however, exhaust and frustrate us. I face an uphill battle convincing nay-sayers how wonderful my kid is when they’ve already decided he’s trouble.

Our discussion revolved around pros and cons, hows and whys. A number of members grew concerned. They didn’t want to be pigeon-holed. Is it “wrong” to write more than one genre? To enter diverse markets? One panelist explained it’s not “wrong,” but it’s not expedient either. We can go in different directions at the same time, but we’ll arrive at both destinations much later than if we had just chosen one path.

Rick and I experienced this last month. We were meeting a group of friends for our annual outing to a special resturant. Rick printed Yahoo maps and I copied directions from the website. After some off-roading (nearly driving into a lake), we arrived an hour late — all because we tried to follow two routes at the same time.

I would rather be known as diverse than distracted. But then sometimes distracted is the better word. My time is limited. Spending it playing an online version of Boggle doesn’t help me finish those book proposals. I need to focus.

What is the focus God wants you to have? Are you divided in your endeavors?

We all wear several hats. I’m a mother, a wife, a friend, a sister, a neighbor, a daughter. I’m also a writer, a teacher, an encourager, a stamper and scrapbooker. And this is just a glimpse! I’m not saying we can only be defined by one thing. I’m just saying that we need to emphasize the one thing God wants to be our focus. If He wants you to witness to your coworkers, you can’t spend all your time together talking abour movies and never mentioning the Gospel. If God wants you sharing meals with the homeless, you can’t avoid where they live.

Let’s find our focus and reach our destinations.

Photo by Margo C, courtesy of Flickr.com.