20 Jul 2025 4 min read Wellbeing

Why Focusing Outward Transforms Your Work and Life

A teacher asked her students to write their names on a balloon and release them in her classroom. Forty balloons jumbled around in the air. She then gave the students one minute to find the balloon that had their name on it. After a minute passed, no one found their balloon.

On the second attempt, the teacher asked the students to take the first balloon they found and give it to the person whose name was on it. Within seconds, everyone had their balloon.

The teacher explained: These balloons represent your happiness. Focus on your own happiness, and you may never find it. Help others find their happiness, and you will find yours as well.

Focus Outward, Not Inward

This story highlights how serving others brings you happiness and success.

It's a concept I've come across time and time again – in books, talks, and real life.

In the context of work, helping others is necessary to:

We often approach situations thinking, What do I want?
But the real magic happens when we ask, What do they need?

Here are some examples:

"Transformational" Relationships

In the book "Who Not How", Dan Sullivan stresses the importance of having an outward focus in business and life.

Rather than asking, "What's in it for me?", ask, "What's in it for them? How can I create value for them?"

Solely focusing on what you can get makes transactional relationships, which are not genuine. Instead, create "transformational" relationships that foster collaboration and mutual growth.

After all, when you distill life, it really is about your relationships with the people around you.

We could all benefit from having more outward focus.

If you're curious how this plays out in real life, check out the stories below.