Maintaining Focus is important for success in online business. One must have clearly defined goals and taking steps to accomplish them is key factor.

Dictionary defines focus as 'concentrated effort or attention on a particular thing', 'an area of concern' and 'the condition of seeing sharply and clearly' besides many others. I have listed these three meanings because although they appear similar but they have their own subtle differences and all of them apply in case of online success in business.

Read them again and you will find the underlying message they carry.

Does your focus cover all these areas? If not then revise your schedules.

Defining goals is integral part maintaining the focus. For better results along with long term goals short term goals should be defined .consider your long term goal as a staircase that will take you to height. To walk the stair should have series of steps or your short term goals.

Write your long term goal for the current year and then divide that into monthly and weekly accomplishments. Then write your daily work plan for the week and try your best to keep them. As you move down the list cross off the completed tasks.

Keep this list within view from the computer so when you slack you see your list of unfinished goals right there. Aside from staying organized, using list gives you a sense of completion as you check off the completed items on your list.

Always strive to do better than the week before and your monthly achievements will be on schedule.

Have you contributed to your business more than last week?

Here are few tips that can help you to stay focused

- Clear your desk, computer desktop of all the unnecessary things. Our minds can only hold three to four thoughts at any given time and visual clutter leads to confusion and that results in confusion

- Get a planner. If you're not using one you need to use a regular paper planner. It's easy to go through pages and write in events. For daily tasks an erasable board or slate is better.

- Work in short, focused bursts. After doing something for a certain time, you gradually lose interest and focus. It's better to work in short increments (e.g. one hour), take a two to five minute break between tasks, and then work on something else. You'll get more work done in less time.

- Permit yourself time for relaxation. Fifteen to thirty minutes of intense thinking and focus throughout the day will save you hundreds of hours of unnecessary work and frustration.

- Turn off the phone and email program when you work unless your working requires them at that moment. Designate specific times during the day to return calls, answer emails. They are unnecessary distractions and most phone calls and emails can usually wait.

- Keep a daily journal. At the end of each day, record your thoughts honestly. You'll be amazed how much it reveals about yourself and areas in your life that require improvement.

- Keep a track of your achievements and failure. Work on the weak areas after you identify it from the record.

Most of all never let the negative thoughts discourage you. Whenever you feel so read or watch something that will motivate you.

World is full of successful examples and biographies. May be yours is the next.

Just stay focused.

Copyright 2005 Arun Pal Singh

Author is a successful marketer and writer. Visit his website http://www.homeforprofits.com to know more about success in online business. To avail his free Income Course, send an e-mail to subscribe@homeforprofits.com with subject 'subscribe'.