I was talking with a friend the other day about how easy it is to just sit and scroll on your phone. You open it to check something, and suddenly fifteen minutes, a half hour, or more has gone by.
There’s always something vying for our attention. Sometimes, we just focus on whichever voice is the loudest, object is the shiniest, or gossip is the juiciest — often without even realizing it.
Other times, we might be feeling insecure, anxious, or uncertain. We question ourselves or worry if we did the right thing. For some, this kind of thinking leads to ruminating and spiraling into even more self-doubt.
What you focus your attention on matters, and you always have a choice in where it goes. In this second part of the post, I want you to ask yourself: what are you giving your attention to, and more importantly, is it benefiting you? Is what you pay attention to adding to your life, or draining your energy?
Attention is our most important currency. Decide what’s truly worth your energy, and then focus on it consciously.
The Energy Exchange
When you physically look at something, you are doing more than simply taking in information. You are sharing your energy with it — inviting it into your awareness and giving it a place in your mental and emotional space. The longer you hold your attention on something, the more weight it carries in your mind, and the more effect it has on your experience.
Looking at something isn’t a neutral act; it’s almost an agreement of sorts. By focusing on it, you’re acknowledging it, validating it, and giving it a form of life in your perception.
Your attention amplifies it.
This works both ways: if you focus on what uplifts or inspires you, you cultivate more of that energy. If you focus on negativity, fear, or anxious thoughts, you’re lending your energy to them and reinforcing more things that bring negativity, fear and/or anxious thoughts into your own experience.
Attention really is currency. Every glance, every moment of focus is a choice — a conscious or unconscious exchange of your energy for whatever you choose to notice.
Learning to direct it intentionally is how you choose the direction of your life, the quality of your relationships, and your relationship with yourself.
The Cost of Unfiltered Attention
What happens when we don’t monitor what we pay attention to?
If we focus too much on negativity, it drains our energy. The friend who always seems to complain, the endless arguments on our favorite reality shows, and even the critical opinions of loved ones — all of these messages reach our subconscious. Over time, this constant negativity affects our mood, our focus, and even our nervous system.
Energy-draining conversations and repeated negative inputs subtly shape how we feel, how we think, and how we show up in the world.
Attention on Multiple Levels
Attention works on multiple levels at once, mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually. On a mental level, whatever you focus on becomes more prominent in your thoughts. The brain reinforces repeated thoughts, shaping the way we think and how we perceive things.
Emotionally, attention acts like a tuning fork — when you dwell on something, your feelings begin to align with it. This influences your mood, stress levels, and sense of safety.
Spiritually, attention determines what you feel connected to and what you allow to influence your inner landscape.
What you give constant attention to becomes part of how you experience your journey, it shapes how you see yourself, others, and the world around you. In this way, attention is not passive; it’s creative. It directs the quality of your inner landscape and, over time, the direction of your outer one as well.
Know what you value and choose what you focus on intentionally. Be aware of your thoughts, and how those thoughts make you feel.
Even if something seems harmless, it still has an effect on you to some degree. Not everything that wants your attention deserves it. It’s up to you to decide what that means for you.
In the event that you’re around negativity, toxicity or aggression or anything else that you do not want more of, it’s okay to look away. If you must, physically remove yourself from the situation, you are not obligated to give your attention anywhere you do not want it to go.
This is not avoidance, it’s discernment.
Reclaiming Your Focus
Being mindful of what you look at and what you give your attention to is important to your overall health. What you think about affects how you feel, and how you experience your life.
Taking the empowered action to refocus or remove yourself, if necessary, restores your agency and protects your peace.
Monitoring the information that you take in, the entertainment you look at and the people you surround yourself with is an act of self-respect and discernment. Not everything deserves your time and energy, and only you can decide what does.
What are you thinking about over and over? How does that make you feel?
Always remember that you have a choice in what you think about, and you have a choice in what you lend your attention to.
Related Reads:
How Does That Make You Feel: How to Check In With Your Emotions,
How Healing Sparks Clarity: Learning to See People with Discernment,
Your Most Important Relationship: The One You Have With Yourself,
Acting Out of Obligation
Resources If you’d like to learn more about power moves and how you might redefine them, check out these links:
