Combating distractions: stay focused
You are working in the office, quietly carrying out your duties, and suddenly your hand reaches for the phone. And now you have found a dispute in the news feed on a topic that concerns you, which you have unnoticeably joined. When you come back to reality the next time, it's already 6 pm on the clock, you're tired and it's time to go home. Sound familiar?
Or you work from home, sit down at your desk, but suddenly you hear the indignant cry of a cat that needs to get into your office. You let him in, remembering in passing that you need to load the dishwasher or washing machine. You return to work, the cat yells that it needs to get out of your office. You let the cat out, meet the delivery guy, unload the machine, order toothpaste, and it's lunch time!
This is roughly how a lot of people's typical days go. The same days where there were no distractions are so off the charts that it feels like they were with other people! So how do you make every workday productive? How do you maintain your concentration?
1. Make a list of major distractions
You can easily identify the main distractions, such as social media and messengers. Think about the ones that work for you. For example, if you have ADHD, even a passing car can distract you.
2. Think about exactly how you can eliminate each of these factors
If working from home distracts you from household chores, set a specific time when you will deal with household issues. And during working hours, make it a habit to think of yourself as if you are not at home. Don't tackle those household issues that you couldn't tackle if you were in the office right now.
For the cat screaming under the door, you can make a special door through which he can enter and exit your office.
Put your phone on “focus” or “airplane mode” when you need to focus. Many people flip their phone screen down, but this rarely helps: chances are your hand will still reach for the phone, and part of you will be looking for an excuse to distract yourself with the first trigger that comes along.
3. Make a prioritized list of tasks that need your 100% attention
This will likely include work tasks, but dig a little deeper as you write them out. It's common to have a lack of concentration in all fields, not just professional ones. You could check your phone even in yoga class and spend time with your child sitting in a shared chat room with coworkers. You must determine when extreme concentration on a single task is your choice and priority.
The illusion of multitasking: is it effective?
Very often we are busy but not productive at all. We do dozens of different things at the same time, but make no progress in any of them. Neuropsychiatrist Theo Compernolle tells us why this happens. We will tell a little theory, but it is not long and interesting.
The fact is that the human brain has only three cognitive systems. They are the ones that determine our decisions, our actions, and even what we think.
The first cognitive system is the so-called thinking brain.
Evolutionarily, it was the last to appear in us. It is responsible for our perception of the past and the future - all those moments when we suddenly think about the connection between generations, about what will happen if we take a certain step or not. This same brain makes plans for the future and also imagines anything. We can have whole worlds in our imagination!
And now the most important thing: the thinking brain is single-tasking. If it's programming, it's only programming. If it's a painting, it's only a painting. As soon as you get distracted, the next cognitive system is activated.
The second cognitive system is the reflex brain.
Logically, this is the brain responsible for reflexes and, of course, it is the oldest. Even the most primitive animals have it. This brain has only the here and now moment, and it always analyzes the information received from our senses. It doesn't care what was there or will be there. If you have a craving now, it will demand that the desire be satisfied.
The third cognitive system is the archiving brain.
It is switched on when the thinking brain is resting because its main time is the time of sleep. The task of this brain is to organize all those arrays of information that have come in and that have been generated.
The evolution of the entire human race was the moment when, instead of relying solely on reflexes, our ancestors suddenly stopped to think. The thinking brain emerged. It turns on when we think about going to bed early, but the brain tells us that it's better to first repeat the speech for tomorrow's presentation. When we don't let the reproductive instinct kick in for some reason. When we don't run headlong for lunch as soon as we feel the first signs of hunger, etc.
Now, the thinking brain is a very slow and focused brain. It needs sustained attention. It absorbs a lot of energy and, of course, tires quickly. ONLY ONE topic at a time can this brain think about. Yet it is the brain that allows us to set goals, plan for them, break them down into stages, and so on.
Concentration techniques: the power of concentration on a single task
A person's success today depends largely on their ability to think. Therefore, it is critical to allow yourself to focus on just one task to allow your thinking brain to do its job.
Using Voiset will give you:
1. Understanding the prioritization of each of the tasks.
Most of the tasks we are distracted by are reflexive. You hear the sound of a drill, you smell a bad odor, you feel hungry, your hand reaches for the phone, etc. However, your thinking brain is the dominant brain and can quite easily overcome any of these reflexes. This is proven, and you can easily give examples when you were able to do it. If you give your thinking brain a prioritized list of tasks in Voiset, it will keep you from being distracted by reflexive tasks. Holding your attention is based on understanding that you want to hold that attention and prioritize what you want to do.
2. Utilizing the reflex brain to benefit one's progress
You can easily conquer any spontaneous desire if you immediately note it and add it to your schedule without fighting it. For example, in the middle of your workday, you suddenly have a critical urge to eat a ripe mango or a cream-cheese cake. Tell Voiset about it immediately, and Voiset will create a note and suggest you add it as a task to your schedule. If you agree, you know you'll have a nice reward this evening, you just have to work on it.
3. Ability to accomplish one task at a time.
The key to your success is consistency. Your thinking brain tires quickly, remember that. It will not be able to work at its maximum every day. It needs an even workload. The AI in Voiset can distribute the workload in your schedule so that you never again have a situation where you just don't know what to do!
Social media and work: the impact on task management
What are the effects of social media? We get caught in a time trap and waste valuable resources on unproductive activities. Communicating on social media and messengers requires concentration. We use our thinking brain resources to tell a random person why their thoughts are wrong. Or to come up with an appropriate caption for a new photo.
It is important to realize that it is the thinking brain that is at work while scrolling through the news feed, and while texting and commenting on posts. It gets tired very quickly. In other words, every day you have to make a simple choice: do you want to spend more time on social networks or direct this time to the realization of your goal? The last question is only irrelevant if time on social media is your job.
The fight against distractions must begin with the realization that there is no such thing as multitasking. If a person can handle several things at the same time, it means that he or she is doing all but one of them on a reflexive level.
