Mindful Hack #79

I’ve noticed a heightened sense of restlessness and even agitation “out there,” and I know that it’s really hard for that kind of energy not to spill over “into here.” 

Distractions are everywhere and constant, and unless we make a conscious effort to reduce them, it’s quite easy to become overwhelmed. I truly believe it’s this intense age of distractions that’s at least in part causing unrest. Distractions overload our senses, which means they keep us from being optimally focused, efficient and productive. But more importantly, distractions get in the way of connection and flow – two things that are fundamentally important to our sense of wellbeing (and even happiness).

We think we’re great multi-taskers and some people even take pride in believing they can do so well. But … the data says otherwise. Studies have shown that we can’t actually do multiple (cognitive) things, simultaneously. Rather, we switch between tasks quickly and the toll it takes on our working memory is substantial. Task-switching has been show to decrease productivity by up to 40%, kills creativity, and drops the quality of all the outputs we’re switching between. Imagine what the implications are by the end of a work week. Think of the time wasted, let alone the deleterious effect on our performance, communication effectiveness and stress levels. Ugh.

There are many things we can do to decrease the number of distractions in our lives, we just have to do them. Strategies include shutting down email and text and turning off notifications for focused-thinking time, limiting the number of times you check your phone and social media feeds (do you really need everybody’s daily play by play?), scheduling meetings and calls to fall only between certain hours each day, and making a point to get up and move your body between tasks to reset. Of course, some quick mindfulness practices also help – it’s useful to check in with yourself from time to time, take a few deep breaths, drop your shoulders down, and refocus on the task at hand.

In an effort to put this advice to action in my own life, (and to accept a challenge from a teacher), I’ve decided to take this month away from IG and FB, altogether. To help my chance of success, I even turned off push notifications and deleted the apps from my phone. Yes, I could cheat, but I know I’d only be cheating myself and I’m frankly curious to see what I get back in exchange for not checking those apps several times a day. Funny, it feels vulnerable and like disconnection, but my guess is that will pass and who knows what I’ll discover. At any rate, I’m not going to challenge you to do likewise, but I will offer you this:

Reducing distractions and clutter can work wonders for presence, connection, focus, flow and wellbeing. What can you reduce today?

Wishing you focus and flow.