When was the last time you spent the day running back and forth to your mailbox every five minutes to check and see if the mailman had arrived?
That’s funny to think about, but the reality is that many of you are checking your e-mail that frequently, logging in and out of Facebook and twitter to see what you’ve missed, and wondering where the day went.
Email, voicemail, ringing phones and social media alerts make us feel busy. They make us feel important. In reality, those things have no relevance to who we are. Technology does not make us important. More often than not, technology makes us scattered, overwhelmed and distracted.
Harness the power of technology by using it as a tool to stay connected or do business, but don’t let it distract you from doing the things that are important to you.
How to Eliminate Distraction
- Mindful Email. Email is a powerful way to communicate for business and pleasure with people around the world. If you want this piece of technology to be useful instead of counterproductive, then manage it. Choose 2-3 times per day to log into your email. Use that block of time to send and respond to email.
- Unsubscribe. If you are receiving promotions from companies that you don’t do business with or people that you don’t care about anymore. Please, break it off. Stop deleting and reacting to things that are not important to you.
- Twitter & Facebook. Even if you are using Twitter or Facebook in the name of business, sitting on either one, checking in all day long and responding to alerts is not helping your business. Remind yourself what you do, and why you do it…then go do it.
- Alerts. If your computer or phone alerts you when someone emails, tweets, please turn that off. No one that is emailing you NEEDS your immediate attention. Respond during one of your planned email sessions.
Imagine what you would accomplish if you stopped reacting, stopped searching, stopped jumping from blog to blog and site to site.
- If you want to read, just read.
- If you want to write, just write.
- If you want to clean, clean.
- If you want to play with your child, play with your child.
One thing at a time will always be more productive, more fulfilling, and more meaningful than attempting to multi-task your way through the day. Do you want a busy day or a meaningful day?
The objective of eliminating distraction is not to control your day or predict your every move, but instead to work on things that you care about, spend time with people that you love, and live your life on purpose.
Love the mailbox analogy! I can say I’m guilty as charged on that one though. It’s addicting, getting new messages. You’re spot on in saying that it makes us feel important. That’s one thing that I can let go of. Thanks for the motivation in this post!
Joel, I’d love to hear back from you after a week of working with scheduled email checks. Let me know how it changes your work flow.
I, too, am guilty as charged. Albeit, I use the internet to facilitate my minimalist life style (no paper clutter, etc…). But, checking my BlackBerry can get addictive. I turned most of the alerts on my phone off, so I do not feel compelled to constantly glance at it. This will help me to just check it a couple times a day.
Chris, It’s so easy to become addicted to the emotional high that comes with the “ding, you have a new message” alert. With all of the daily interruptions we face, it’s hard to dig into the really good stuff.
Spot on! I left my computer for several days (getting a new one plus upgraded software). Sure, I’ll b fine wo it-NOT. Yep, doing more around the house; doing only what needs to b done on my iPod touch. I feared u were going to harangue us about “productivity” as in work and home. U did not. Oops- this is more than 5 sentences :). Thanks.
Thanks Roberta,
I’d encourage you to jot down what you miss about your computer each day. See where your dependence is and if it is on tools that help you or distract you.
After finally sitting down to do the work I’ve been distracted from all morning, I decided to do a quick (unnecessary) email check, where I found…this article. Right: Getting to work now. Thanks 🙂
I’ve struggled with the need to check 500 times a day for years – but it wasn’t until your mailbox analogy that the lightbulb FINALLY went off. Thank you so much – perfect words of wisdom!
And I also think about the toll that all this checking takes on those around us. I inherited my husband’s smart phone for the summer while he is visitng family in Europe. Before he left, I was frustrated at times with how divided his attention could be. When we went for a walk, or sat outside together in the evening, he was checking the phone and responding to call and messages. I wanted his full attention!
Fast forward a month or so…guilty! I find myself equally distracted at times, something I didn’t think would happen. Sometimes I think my behavior is just plain rude, such as when I have a hard time putting down the phone when a colleague strikes up a conversation at the lunch table. What is it about the medium that is so…addictive? I’m trying to become more aware of how and when I respond, and keep the phone put away when other people are present.
I work solely online, so I usually have a lot of stuff open. However, when I need to focus and write, I find it best if I silence my phone except for calls (I get very few calls) close Facebook and Twitter and any other pages I do not need.
Sometimes I will even take my laptop somewhere I do not have internet access to be able to work. (went camping (RVing) last weekend, no access = lots of writing!
I had a visual picture of running out to check the mail (snail) multiple times a day!
Bernice
Don’t get distracted by the SHINY!
Agreed!!! Distractions can suck a whole day up and all of a sudden it’s evening on my day off and i feel like all I have done is email and google my way through the day. I have gotten much much better. I’ve never been on facebook or twitter so that helps a bunch and I have unsubscribed myself from more sites than I can count. This helps a lot!! Also, I set my phone so that it does not alert me when new emails come thru. I just check it on my own. Still….sometimes many many times a day!! Essentially, if I start my day off with a little meditation and some deep stretching, a calm rushes over me that quickly goes away when I dive into the iPad Internet world. I have slowly been learning to keep the calm going strong by reading books, shutting my phone and tv off and enjoying the simple pleasures of life. Much love
I love the comparison of checking email, etc. to running outside to check the mailbox.
I’ve been trying to pay special attention lately to emails that I don’t read from senders (usually somebody wanting to sell me something) I have no interest in and unsubscribing if possible, and that doesn’t work, they get spamlisted.
Courtney, We did it again, thinking on similar terms. I also published an article on my blog this week about surfing the web without losing our balance in life.
It’s a topic that I must confess I still work on. My snag is getting stuck in technology snafus that I don’t understand, spinning my wheels until I figure it out. It’s hard for me to leave things undone. I am one of those who loves to cross things off my list, even if my list grows the next day or week.
My favorite line from your post: “The objective of eliminating distraction is not to control your day or predict your every move, but instead to work on things that you care about, spend time with people that you love, and live your life on purpose.” Bravo!
Courtney,
If you were a major league baseball player, you would be leading the league in homeruns.
Another great post!
I’d like to repost this on my blog – with all the credit and links to you, of course. I assume you’re okay with that?
Thanks Gene! You are welcome to use anything I write.
Great! Thanks! I’ll probably repost it on Monday.
Totally agree! After almost a week on the Cornish Coast and access to my blackberry just first thing and last thing I know that I had a better holiday for not having it with me all day. Remember the days of no mobile (cell)? Looking back in Nostalgia already! 🙂
Oh Jo! I so remember those days.
Thank you!! I needed to read this right now. Just when I thought I was getting my internet usage under control, I started checking my email and Twitter more than usually again. It’s beautiful outside today! I think I will shut down this computer and enjoy the rest of it. 🙂
Loved this post! Thanks for the reminder… fortunately I have to switch off in my business, however I do find my evenings and weekends can be taken up with checking facebook every 2 minutes, wasting my life away…
Wowwwwww. This is so good. Thank you for such an inspired article. Really validated why i feel like a flop even though I’m so “busy”. U r really authentic and i so appreciate that.
I agree! Two weeks ago I had to take my IPhone in because many things were not working well after an update. The “Techie” who worked on it turned on a message sound every time I get an email, posting to Facebook or message. Today, I am going back. I and several others cannot turn this annoying sound off! What would the day be like if we attempted to smile or say a few words to as many people as messages we get?