乔治·埃勒迪斯·里德尔/George Allardice Riddell
The success of some men bewilders those around them because they never seem to work, or to work for any length of time. Their secret is their power to concentrate, and thus to obtain the maximum of result with the minimum of apparent effort. “Concentration”, says Emerson, “is the secret of success in politics, in war, in trade, in short in all the management of human affairs.”
Concentration is a habit of mind. Men are not born equal in their power of concentration any more than in their power of playing billiards. But up to a point every one can improve his powers in every direction. This is the age of specialists. Remember that concentration is necessary not only to do things, but to select what to do. In these days no one can achieve great distinction unless he concentrates on some one thing.
It must be remembered that concentration is an exhausting mental and physical business for those who are unaccustomed to it. Therefore, to begin with, the strain should not be too prolonged. Attention should be relaxed for a suitable period. In other words the habit should be gradually formed. Brisk, vigorous concentration for a quarter of an hour on the first day may be gradually expanded into two hours or more at the end of a month. The essence of concentration is that the full powers of the mind should be centered on the task in hand. A tired mind and body cannot accomplish this to the best advantage, and in the case of children and young persons harm may result from too prolonged efforts.
有些人的成功常常让周围的人大惑不解，因为他们似乎从来都不工作，或者没有长时间地工作。他们的成功秘诀在于他们专注的能力，因而能够凭借最小的明显努力获得最大的成果。爱默生说：“无论是在政治、战争、商业，还是在一切人类事务的处理中，专注都是成功的秘诀。”
专注是一种心理习惯。人们专注的能力就像打台球的能力一样并非生来完全相同的。但是，每个人都可以把自己的能力朝着某个方向提高到某种程度。现在是一个专家的时代。要切记，专注不仅对于做事情来说是必需的，对于选择要做什么样的事情也是必需的。在当今时代，一个人如果不能专注于某一件事情，就不可能取得卓越的成就。