You finally get a chance to sit down and get some work done, then instinctively you pick up and check your phone. It’s a very common and natural impulse, but greatly impedes one’s ability to stay focused; to do the deeper work that produces high value thinking and creativity. This is the kind of work that brings more purpose, motivation, and satisfaction to life. Constant distraction and deep work cannot coexist. When we allow distraction to be a consistent part of our lives, it not only keeps us from producing value, but it damages our brains. The technology addiction conditions the brain to repeatedly distract, consume, and compare. It’s an endless cycle that will leave you feeling empty, alone, and stuck. However you use it, technology can be a very helpful and a strong source for information and connection. One cannot contest with that, but there are costs to allowing it into all hours of the day. Taking an honest look at how and why we use technology is imperative and shouldn’t be taken lightly. It is the purpose of this post to ask hard questions and help you consider the consequences. The first question to consider is what kind of work is meaningful to you? Does it propel you forward towards your goals and what you want in life? Is it worth eliminating your favorite distractions for? If yes, then read on…
Those who are seeking meaning and progress through connection, there is a strong pull to utilize social applications. Remember that an online connection is often based in shallow waters. There seems to be an unspoken rule that if you like and comment on other’s content, they will do the same. The more you contribute the more you get out of it. Not to mention the FOMO generated through social platforms seeking to earn more adherence and loyalty to agendas, events, products, people, and organizations. Here are some difficult and possibly harsh questions to consider: Are these online relationships worth the time and sacrifice of your time money and attention? If you were to quit social media without telling anyone, would they notice? Is your presence as necessary as you think it is? Remember that the real life connections matter most and will produce the most value. The people within proximity of your influence are able to see and recognize your true value unfiltered by an algorithm hungry for your constant nourishment and attention. Look up and have the meaningful conversations and make connections face to face.
No matter what you are passionate about or interested in pursuing, you will find the gurus and the popular voices online. With so much knowledge being offered up to their thousands of followers, how can one compete with that? The truth is, you can’t, and constantly referring to social media will continue to feed your algorithm with more content to compare yourself to. Following trends and comparison keeps you from stepping into your unique greatness. Don’t get stuck trying to be good enough. Go do good with the good that you already have! You are more valuable than you think, especially when you put your phone down and look up to the people right in front of you. Your ability to avoid distraction will make you a rarity and give you the edge when it comes to producing meaningful and valuable work. So just go do good and work hard to create. Here are a couple more hard questions for you: Are you capable of doing the work and being satisfied with it regardless of how much recognition you get? Can you fall in love with the work without needing to check for approval?
Just like any muscle, it will atrophy if you don’t use it. Your brain is the same. A brain prone to distraction will crave more distraction. Can you make it a full day without technology? How did it go? If you find it difficult, it might be time to establish some new ground rules to discipline yourself. Just like a muscle, you are also completely capable of strengthening the synapses necessary to accomplish deeper work and focus. When you consider the work required to produce the value you want to achieve, remember that your mastery over technology and distraction is the key to making progress! Consider what you want, and ask yourself another hard question: How bad do you want it? Are you willing to undergo the changes necessary to get there?
Here are some tips and tricks you might try…
-Set time restrictions on your phone for undistracted work time.
-Plan your day. Make it easy to mold and adapt and align to your shifting priorities. If a priority pops up, you are free to re-plan your day as necessary.
-Remove your time sucking apps.
-Plan your technology “shallow work” (emails, texts, and admin work) at a specific point in your day.
-Turn off your notifications.
-Delete and reload the apps you need to use, but have little self control in.
-Plug your phone into the wall and use it like a land line.
-Power off 2 hours before bed time.
-Don’t take your phone with you to the bathroom.
-When you’re done working for the day. “Shut down.” Say it out loud!
Have you tried any of these things before? Would you add any other strategies to the list? Remember that it takes time to replace habits with new ones. Practice will make you stronger. You can do hard things, and you have way too much value you need to share with the others to just mindlessly give into distraction. You don’t have the time for it. You’ve got important work to do. Go do it.
*BOOK REFERENCE:
Newport, C. (2016). Deep work: Rules for focused success in a distracted world. Grand Central Publishing.
As inMOTION Studios looks back on the past year, there are many workshops, classes, workouts, and marketing campaigns that have been analyzed as to what are bringing about the most value for time spent. It has become apparent that certain initiatives and behaviors have not contributed to the value we have been trying to produce. It is our intention to make a shift in the way we approach our work and dedication to producing more valuable content. We would like to sight and highly recommend the book “Deep Work” By Cal Newport as the inspiration behind our choices and paradigm shift. Here’s to a year of focused deep work!
Opmerkingen