11 September 2007

WYSIWYG is a term for computer programs where you get what you see. PowerPoint is a WYSIWYG program. WYSIWYG stands for What You See Is What You Get and there is something that rings true. The things that you focus on are the things that you get.

Imagine that you've just sat down to write an article for the newspaper. You are sitting on your deskchair and start to write. All goes well and you are focused on your task. Out of the corner of your eye you suddenly see something move. Only 2 metres away form you is a large housespider, sitting there looking at you. You are terrified, because you hate spiders. The long thin legs, the large hairy body and the little eyes. Slowly you reach out for the newspaper, but before you can hit it the spider has crawled back through the crack in the wall and is gone.

What happened to the article? It completely disappeared out of focus! You spend a few minutes gathering your thoughts and soon you fingers are again flying around the keyboard. After half an hour the spider is completely forgotten, right up until the point where you reach for your coffee and jump out of the chair when you see the spider right next to the cup. It runs away and quickly disappears into its hidingplace. Now it takes several minutes to gather your thoughts, because your eyes keep checking the spider's hidingplace. It spoils your concentration and thus the quality of your work.

This is what it is like with all the goals we set ourselves. The more we let the spiders in our life affect our focus, the more control they have over us. Our focus is a determining factor in the probability of our reaching our goals. The more fear we experience, the more of our focus it takes and thus it controls our actions. The things that we cannot live with control our life.

Have a good working day

/Martin