Good morning, it’s Monday. ☀️ It’s been a really busy summer filled with politics, fun in the sun, and expanding business. Sometimes we all fall out of a groove, whether it be a creative, professional, or personal one.
“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” -Lao Tzu
We all get off track. And it’s OK, because we’re all human. What’s important is recognizing when you’re falling behind and taking the steps necessary to get back into the groove.
Maybe you’re falling behind because of distractions. While our phones are amazing pieces of technology that can connect us to any information and any person in the world, they also can be the biggest sources of distractions.
Chris Bailey, the author of Hyperfocus: How to Manage Your Attention in a World of Distraction, talks about how technology companies are able to get you to stop what you’re doing and focus instead on a social media or game app on your phone.
Although we’re wired to be distracted, as Bailey says, it doesn’t have to be that way.
There’s a great app on the market to help — and yes, the irony is not lost — and it’s called Forest. On the app, users set a timer to “plant” a tree. When the timer is up, the tree is planted. After a few completed focused trees, users can see a forest of focus they’ve planted. But if you try to exit out of the app, the tree “dies,” and users have to reset the timer.
Challenge:
If you’re starting to feel bored and distracted:
- Find a new way to keep yourself focused on tasks, like setting phones in another room or locking apps during certain times of the day.
- Give yourself a strict 5–10-minute break to breathe, look up news articles, or grab a cup of coffee.
- Reward yourself when you complete a task with no distractions.
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Let’s grab coffee soon,
Drew Horine, Founder & Chief Creative
