It's funny, but when we're paving our way to success, we can forget about the fundamental materials: focus and direction. Nothing is worth as much as staying focused on the right course. Understanding it is valuable at all times, especially when the journey gets dark, when situations get tough, and when we feel like we've lost our senses. Staying focused and in the direction is so relevant because when we are clear about it, everything else lights up.

Lewis Carroll, in one of my favourite novels Alice in Wonderland, narrates this passage between the Laughing Cat and the protagonist. She is lost in the garden. His face reflects confusion in the face of the infinite options and paths he can take. There are arrows pointing in different directions. You have no idea what your best alternative might be. Then, the Cheshire Cat appears to him lying on the branch of a tree. Alice asks him, "Which way should I go?" "Where do you want to go?" the cat asks him. "I don't know, I'm lost," he says. "In that case, take the one you want." And yes. The Cat's answer is not only pertinent but wise. When we don't know where we want to go, it doesn't matter where we want to go. When we forget what our destination is, it doesn't matter whether we go north or south, right or left. However, we better know.

Focus is something deeper and more substantial than setting goals. A goal is a point on the route—it is the cross that marks our destiny. It is a reference that we want to achieve and that we must not forget when we are presented with problems, obstacles and challenges that make us feel that the possibilities of success are far away. But if we lose focus and direction, then it's not that the goal is moving away, it's that it's being lost.

One piece of advice that boy scouts give to those who get lost in the forest is to set a goal on the horizon, a mountain, or a very large tree. It is about looking for a point that is not immediately accessible. The magic of doing so is that the steps find a direction and the lost walker has a focus of attention. It is about walking towards salvation.

When we lose our way, regardless of whether it is a personal matter, an entrepreneurial project, a company, or a corporate of global levels, we also lose our objectives—the plan to achieve them ceases to matter, values and principles slip down the drain, and the scenarios are blurred. Progress or setbacks cannot be measured in this way. The compass breaks down and every man must fend for themselves!

A Mexican saying very much in line with the theme is this: "If you want to have golden results, you must set golden goals." We often wonder how it is possible that experienced companies, with years in the market, with products that have been successful, lose sales and are no longer the favourites of their consumers. It is not that the execution of the strategy has not been adequate or that they have lost their old market advantages, at least, not in most cases. The surprising common denominator is that they got distracted, stopped paying attention, lost focus, and lost their way.

Be careful—staying focused does not mean being stuck. Stagnation comes when the messages sent by the market are not paid attention, and the consumer is left aside. As obvious as it may seem, this simple fact is that this is one of the most neglected elements on the part of executives, entrepreneurs, and businessmen. We are easily distracted—there is a lot of noise in the environment, and it is very easy for us to forget the address and get lost on the way. Focus and direction are closely related to an old concept that we may believe is in disuse: fidelity.

To be faithful to our objectives, to our goal, is to pay attention to what really matters. When problems come—they always do—it is very easy to turn back, to hesitate, to change course, to change direction. Forget about it and move on to something else. Fidelity indicates that tolerance to frustration is needed to not run away—it means not giving up before time, overcoming obstacles and moving forward. Seek and recover the path of success.

It's like when we find fog on the road—the worst thing the driver can do is get off the road. It is better to sharpen your senses, move forward with caution without losing direction, and concentrate on reaching the destination. Yes, that's right. Of course, perseverance can be confused with foolishness. Perhaps, along the way we are going to encounter typical short-term obstacles, and what we need is to raise our sights and be able to glimpse the long-term, or at least, imagine what we will do in the medium-term.

Something very important to focus on and continue in the right direction is to look deep and reflect. Where are our roots? We can all make mistakes and it is wise to recognise them. There are no wonderful recipes, but if you feel like Alice in Alice Wonderland and can't find the right direction, let me give you some tips that may be useful:

  • If the actions you are taking do not bring you closer to the goal: think again, think twice.

  • Don't have too many goals. Above all, don't have many goals if you are led to take divergent paths. You may end up walking in circles.

  • Set golden goals and pursue the paths that lead you to that place.

  • Remember, goals are like fish: after a while they stop being fresh and start to stink.

  • Staying on an unattainable goal for too long is just as bad as changing it frequently.

Paving the way to success means concentrating, staying focused, and persevering in the direction. It is to have a clear goal to reach it. It is to stop thinking about reaching so many other places when we have not yet reached the first one. It is about using our resources to achieve what we set out to do. These rules are highly valued by the military. They understand that they will not win the war if they do not triumph in battles. The sad thing is that we forget this basic premise. It's about focusing and not losing direction.