Sometimes it makes sense to keep your eye on the ball. But sometimes it can be a double edged sword.
Last night I got a chance to watch little bit of the opening game of the NFL season. And somewhere in the second quarter Jacoby Jones called for a fair catch on a punt return. And then he was taken out by his own teammate, just before he was able to catch the ball.
Watching the playback in slow motion you could see that he was clearly keeping his eye on the ball. But so was Brynden Trawick, only his eye was on the defender he was trying to block. Both men were very intently aware of the task at hand. And maybe in that split second they saw each other and it was too late for them or they expected the other to move. But is doesnt look like it. It looks like they were both hyper focused on what they were intending to do and did not see the other until it was too late.
I know that I do the same thing in my own life. I tend to focus only on what seems to be the most important thing to me at the time. And by only keeping my eye only on that ball, I inadvertently put blinders on myself and block out all of the other information that might be able to prevent this kind of collision.
The hunters on the plains knew this well and they would try to develop a wider sense of vision when they were hunting so that they would not fall victim to this very human problem. They would defocus their eyes from whatever was in front of them to allow their peripheral vision into their field of view. By doing this they were able to have a more successful hunt and keep themselves safe from predators.
I am in no way saying that this is an easy thing to do or that Jacoby or Brynden should have done it in the game. What I am saying is that awareness of your surroundings and focus on your mission/goal/ball/etc. can coexist. But it takes practice.
And focus. And awareness.
Quite a pickle huh?
Good Luck!