Paula Modersohn-Becker wasn’t famous in her lifetime. She didn’t have galleries lined with admirers or critics writing about her every brushstroke. But she knew something most creatives never figure out—how to control the center. It wasn’t about fame or fortune; it was about focus.

At a time when women were expected to paint delicate flowers and polite portraits, Paula broke through the norms like a fist through glass. She painted raw, unfiltered humanity: mothers nursing their children, the elderly worn by time, nudes that stared back with defiance. Her work wasn’t about decoration. It was about stripping everything down to its core—finding the center and owning it.

While other artists scattered their attention, chasing trends or approval, Paula honed in on what mattered: truth. She didn’t just pick up a brush and hope for inspiration. She dug in, fought for clarity in the mess of her thoughts, and prioritized the raw, emotional core of her subjects. Every decision, every detail, came from a place of control.

In the chaos of creativity, controlling the center is everything. It's not just about what’s on the canvas. It’s about deciding what should be on the canvas—and what doesn’t belong. Just like on the battlefield, where armies jostle for the best position, the creative mind must identify what matters most and build from there. Paula may not have lived to see her influence spread, but she understood this truth: control the center, and the rest follows.

The Why

The concept is simple but ruthless: the center is your most strategic point. In military terms, it’s the spot that gives you maximum leverage—control over movement, sightlines, and the ability to respond to threats from any direction. The generals who control the center have options. They dictate the tempo. Everyone else is scrambling to keep up.

Now, let’s bring that battlefield to your creative process. Creativity can feel like a war zone, with distractions and doubts launching sneak attacks, while a million ideas crowd your mind, each demanding a piece of your attention. But those who thrive—those who create enduring works—know how to identify the center of their project and ruthlessly prioritize it. They focus on the core elements that define success, ignoring the noise and detours that lead other creatives astray.

The How

Just like a general commanding troops from the heart of the action, controlling the center of your creative process requires precision and strategy. It’s not about juggling every idea that crosses your mind—it’s about focusing on what truly matters and pushing forward with ruthless intent. Here’s how to do it:

1. Identify your central focus: Strip away the noise and zero in on the core element of your project. Ask yourself: What’s the one thing that, if mastered, makes everything else easier or irrelevant?
2. Establish non-negotiables: Set clear boundaries for what’s most important. These are the elements that will not be compromised, no matter what distractions come your way.
3. Prioritize ruthlessly: Rank tasks based on their impact. The goal isn’t to do more, but to do what matters most. If a task doesn’t move the needle on your core focus, it’s secondary.
4. Commit to the process: Discipline is the weapon you wield here. Set specific time blocks where you’ll only work on your central focus—no distractions, no detours.

Tips and Tricks

Here are some quick strategies to help you keep the center of your project in focus and stay in control:

• Chunk your work: Break large projects into smaller, manageable parts that still align with your core goal.
• Use visual reminders: Keep your main focus front and center—a sticky note on your monitor, a sketch on the wall, something to pull you back when distractions hit.
• Schedule check-ins: Set regular times to reassess your progress and ensure you’re staying on course.
• Say “no” more often: Defend your creative energy. If it doesn’t serve the central goal, it’s a distraction.
• Automate or delegate: Anything that doesn’t require your direct creative touch should be automated or handed off to someone else.

Mistakes to Avoid

Even with the best intentions, it’s easy to slip. Watch out for these common mistakes that derail focus and control:

• Chasing shiny objects: New ideas are tempting, but jumping from one to the next keeps you from finishing anything.
• Overloading your schedule: Don’t mistake busyness for productivity. Too many tasks dilute your energy.
• Being a perfectionist: Holding onto perfection can paralyze progress. Focus on what’s essential, not what’s flawless.
• Ignoring feedback: Don’t let tunnel vision block out valuable input. Just make sure the feedback aligns with your main goal.
• Burning out: Controlling the center means pacing yourself. Don’t push so hard that you can’t sustain your progress long term.

The Center as a Creative Stronghold

When you control the center, you’re not just focusing on one part of your work—you’re building a stronghold. It’s the foundation on which everything else stands. This isn’t just about avoiding distraction; it’s about creating a creative fortress that shields you from the chaos and allows you to make meaningful progress. Let’s break down how to turn your center into an unshakeable force.

1. The Core Idea

Before you can control the center, you have to define it. What’s the main objective of your current project? What’s the driving force? Every piece of your work should orbit around this central idea.

• Clarify the purpose: Why are you doing this project? What’s the end goal?
• Determine the stakes: What happens if you don’t focus on this? What’s at risk?
• Identify the main objective: Write down the single most important outcome for this work.

Once you have these in place, your creative center becomes a fortress, a clear and powerful structure that guides every decision you make.

2. Defending the Center

It’s not enough to just know your center—you have to protect it. Every day, new ideas, tasks, and opportunities will try to pull you away from it. You need to develop strategies for defending your focus.

• Limit your creative inputs: Too much inspiration can be just as dangerous as too little. Set strict boundaries on how much outside content you consume while working on a project.
• Use the power of “no”: Every time you say “yes” to a new task, you’re saying “no” to your core focus. Guard your time and energy like they’re finite—because they are.
• Create physical and mental Space: If your environment is cluttered with distractions, so is your mind. Design a space where the only thing that matters is the project in front of you.

3. Consolidating Resources

Controlling the center doesn’t mean micromanaging every detail. Instead, it’s about identifying the critical points of leverage in your work and focusing your resources there. Think like a strategist—where can you apply the least effort to get the greatest impact?

• Focus on the 80/20 rule: Identify the 20% of actions that will produce 80% of your results. Pour your energy into those tasks.
• Batch your creative work: Group similar tasks together to maintain momentum. Switching between unrelated tasks fractures your focus and weakens your center.
• Outsource the small stuff: If a task isn’t essential to your core focus, delegate it. The more time you spend on minor tasks, the more energy you siphon away from your central creative goals.

4. The Pivot

Controlling the center isn’t about rigidity—it’s about agility. The key is to pivot without losing sight of your main objective. Conditions will change, new information will surface, but if you can adjust while keeping your central focus intact, you’ll stay on track.

• Reassess, don’t abandon: When new challenges or opportunities arise, ask yourself: Does this align with my core focus? Can I adapt it to fit within my existing framework?
• Set decision triggers: Define in advance under what circumstances you’ll shift your strategy. This keeps you from making emotional, knee-jerk reactions that could pull you off course.
• Maintain flexibility in execution: Be firm in your goals but flexible in how you achieve them. Sometimes the path to success looks different than you originally imagined—just make sure it still leads to your core objective.

5. The Victory

Ultimately, controlling the center is about progress, not perfection. How do you know if you’re succeeding? Measure your victories not by how much you’ve done, but by how aligned your actions are with your core goal.

• Track the right metrics: Don’t just measure output—measure the impact of your work. Are your efforts moving you closer to the end goal?
• Celebrate strategic wins: Did you stay focused today? Did you protect your creative time? These small wins compound over time, leading to larger victories.
• Evaluate and iterate: Regularly review your progress. Are you still controlling the center, or have you drifted? Course-correct as needed, always with your core focus in mind.

When you control the center of your creative process, you turn chaos into order, distraction into discipline, and potential into realized success. Every move you make is intentional, strategic, and aligned with your greater vision. This is how the best work gets done.

The Enemy: Distraction and the Illusion of Progress

Every creative has faced it: that tantalizing pull to start something new, that whisper in your mind telling you the real breakthrough lies in the next idea, the next project, the next experiment. It’s seductive, that voice. But it’s a liar. Distraction doesn’t come in the form of failure or fatigue—it comes dressed as opportunity. The worst part? It makes you feel like you’re making progress, when really, you’re just drifting further from the center.

Think of Napoleon. A brilliant tactician, right? But in 1812, he ignored his own strategy and marched into Russia, pulled by the siren call of conquest, rather than controlling the center of his empire. He scattered his resources, overextended himself, and fell victim to his own ambition. For creatives, distraction is your Russia. It lures you into thinking that more is better, that variety equals productivity.

But here’s the truth: creative progress happens when you say no to the shiny things and yes to the essential. The idea you’ve already committed to? That’s your center. The others? They’re just empty battlegrounds waiting to bleed you dry.

What does this mean for you? Every time you take on a new project, every time you let yourself get pulled in another direction, you’re losing control of the very thing that matters most: your focus. And without focus, you’re just wandering the battlefield, hoping for victory without a plan.

So next time distraction creeps in, ask yourself: Is this just a new front in an endless war, or am I controlling the center? Because the only way to win is to hold your ground and fight for what matters most.

Mental Models to Help You Control the Center

To sharpen your ability to control the center, you can apply mental models that have stood the test of time across disciplines. These frameworks will help you maintain focus, make smarter decisions, and stay in control of your creative process.

• Regret Minimization Framework: Imagine yourself in the future, looking back on your current decisions. Which choice would you regret not taking? This model helps you prioritize bold, meaningful moves over short-term comfort.
• Circle of Competence: Stay within the areas where you have the greatest knowledge and skills. By focusing your energy where you’re strongest, you’ll make better decisions and maintain control over your work.
• The 10/10/10 Rule: When making decisions, consider how you'll feel about it in 10 minutes, 10 months, and 10 years. This helps you avoid impulsive decisions and keeps long-term consequences in focus.
• The Eisenhower Matrix: Prioritize by urgency and importance. The center is where the most important and non-urgent tasks live—the ones that will make the biggest long-term impact.
• The Flywheel Effect: Momentum matters. Small, focused wins create a compounding effect that builds unstoppable momentum over time.
• The Adjacent Possible: Creativity thrives at the edge of what’s already known. Focus your efforts on areas where your current knowledge and resources can open new doors, pushing your work forward in unexpected ways.

Controlling the center is more than just a tactical move—it’s the key to mastering your creative process. By focusing on what truly matters and using the right mental models, you turn chaos into clarity, distractions into fuel, and uncertainty into a strategic advantage. The battlefield is yours—seize it.