Finding Focus: An Attention Addict’s Quest to Regain a Modern Super Power
Have you ever started a project, only to find yourself on YouTube or Facebook 10 minutes later? I certainly have. Although I need to get that project done, I’m much more interested in catching up with my favorite YouTubers or seeing if my friends have posted anything exciting.
Unfortunately, indulging in this habit has left my ability to focus in shambles. I find it much more difficult to engage in a task, like writing an article, without checking distractions. Rediscovering the art of deep focus will likely be hard, but a worthwhile investment.
Focus and Social Media
Social media is engineered to keep your attention captive.
As most of my friends know, I’ve never loved social media, I resisted Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. I would often be the last of my friends to find my way onto these platforms. Even when I did join, it was reluctantly.
Unfortunately, I’m starting to experience the negative effects of social media. In particular, I find myself mindless scrolling through Twitter and Facebook more often than I’d like. If I’m bored or waiting for something to occur, these have become my default response.
Switching between multiple stories, articles, or videos is now a regular part of my routine. Two years ago, I would have refused to do such a thing. I was insistent on doing one thing at a time. Since I’ve become more active with social media, my impatience has grown.
My Declining Attention Span
An additional consequence of my new found impatience is my disdain for routine drudgery. This is especially problematic for me professionally. When you’re in an entry-level job, the first set of tasks you get are often mundane and unimportant.
Previously, I would have been able to fight off the negative feelings associated with the task by focusing wholly on doing the activity well and quickly. My old method of coping has been taken from me.
Now my mind wanders after about 5 minutes of this pure boredom. My mind often wanders while I’m writing or editing too. While I was writing and editing this piece I was constantly feeling the urge to check some social media and do anything but write/edit.
Working for a couple of hours at a time with only minimal breaks used to be my norm. Now, I’m lucky if I can concentrate fully for more than 30 minutes at a time without requiring a break. Although I can still occasionally enter a flow state, it’s far less frequent.
Plan to Regain Focus
Now that I’ve recognized that I have a problem, I can take steps to address it. For me, one of the most important things is a system that holds me accountable. If you have as great friends as I do, you can ask them to help hold you accountable.
Building a support system of cherished friends and family is a good first step, but it isn’t perfect. They cannot be around all the time. More importantly, if I want to create sustained change, then I can’t rely solely on them.
An easy and powerful step I can take is to put my phone into airplane mode at work.
Utilizing airplane mode will hopefully create enough friction between work and distraction that the distraction becomes less tempting over time.
I also want to make this a habit while I attempt to go to bed. Switching my phone to airplane mode at a predetermined time, 10 pm in my case will also help me sleep better.
Sleep has become an even more invaluable ally than before. Resisting temptation is much easier when I’m well rested. A lack of sleep means the calls for instant gratification and distraction are much harder to resist.
Lastly, I plan on measuring my social media use in hopes that the total time goes down. I’m not quite sure how I’m going to accomplish this yet. If you have any suggestions, I’d love to read them below.
Summary
In the modern era, the ability to focus for long periods of time and commit to a deeper type of work is quickly becoming uncommon. I want to harness this power for good. I previously could focus intently and I know I can again.
Regaining the ability to intently focus for an extended period won’t be easy. Thankfully, difficult things are usually worth it in the end. Given my plan and support from friends, I believe I’ll be able to redevelop my focus muscle by the end of 2019.
