How to Stay Focused in 9 Words
Staying focused is a common problem for us techo savvy 21st century dwellers. There are so many distractions out here in cyberspace we can’t focus on getting the important stuff done. We’re so easily distracted from our goals of personal happiness, business success, exotic travel or whatever it is we want in life.
Planning goals is one thing but how to stay focused on them day after day, eliminate distractions and actually making them happen is another problem.
The growing problem with staying focused
I’m sure the problem of how to stay focused isn’t new. I bet people have always looked for welcome distractions (well, I know I have) and even an 18th Century writer like Charles Dickens could have been distracted from his work by a neighbour popping round, his pen springing a leak or a noisy seagull perching on his fence. Even cavemen probably got distracted. But the number of distractions has got out of control now and it’s time to eliminate them.
The problems really began with television. At first there was only one TV channel and that probably distracted people from their usual lives quite enough. But then another channel came along and so on until today many of us have access to tens of TV channels and some people spend half their waking hours pushing buttons on the remote control and flicking through the entertainment options.
The Internet made things even worse. Just when computers got small and cheap enough that people could buy them for personal use the Internet came along. The Internet is to television what crack cocaine is to tylenol. There are literally billions of pages of information out there vying for our attention and now, with the advent of social media, millions of people who could decide to contact us online.
Even if you get away from the distractions of the Internet and their computer most people still take a mobile phone wherever they go and break off what they’re doing each time it beeps, rings or vibrates.
All these things and the many options available are actually training us to have shorter and shorter attention spans and our quest to find something that diverts us from daily life even if only for a few seconds is becoming more urgent. Isn’t that why people keep emailing each other jokes and stories?
The increasing demand for help with productivity
It’s little wonder that most of us have trouble getting things done.
It’s one of the reasons why Zen Habits about simple productivity is one of the most popular blogs on the Internet. People are crying out for advice on how to eliminate distractions, be more productive and get the stuff they want to do done. That’s why the creator of Zen Habits, Leo Babauta, is one my favourite writers and thousands of people would probably agree with me on that.
Another of my favourite writers and bloggers, Penelope Trunk recently summed up productivity on her blog saying: One thing at a time. Most important thing first. Start now. She wrote a great post about productivity for Get In the Hot Spot a while back too.
But when I went back to Penelope’s blog post I discovered she credited a Life Hack post on productivity and they in turn credited a tweet from some super Twitter users which led me to the original post by Skelliewag. Coincidentally yet another great blog writer who I discovered this week.
If that story doesn’t prove how distracted we are I don’t know what does. We’re at the point where even a writer writing about how to focus gets distracted by tracking something simple down on the Internet because one thing leads to another and another. Before you know it your working day has slipped by and your work output has slipped off.
It’s got to stop and really eliminate distractions or your life will slip by with regrets about the things you wanted to do but didn’t. Here’s the solution.
How to stay focused in 9 words
Identify distractions. Remove them. Remember your long term goals.
That’s it. You know what the distractions are. You know how to stop them from distracting you. You have to keep thinking about your ultimate goals because if you don’t have goals then your life will amount to nothing more than a series of distractions.
I hope these nine words help you. Distractions I’ve eliminated in the past include cooking, cleaning, shopping, TV, drinking alcohol and partying. Of course, I still do all those things, I just keep them in the background where they belong instead of letting them, take over my life and getting in the way of my goals.
Now I’m going to do that with the Internet too so I should reach my goals even faster. I’ll still see you around in Cyberspace of course, just not all the time. I think my readers, Leo, Penelope and Skelliewag will approve. Thanks to all of you for the continued inspiration to be the best blogger I can be.
What distracts you from your true goals? How can you remove those distractions?
Please leave a comment if you have time. Committing it to writing will help you stay on track of your goals and keep those distractions where they belong. That’s partly why I share my plans and problems with you. I’d love to hear what yours are so we can all help each other stay motivated and inspired or share your tips on how to eliminate distractions.
Thanks for reading and being part of the winning Get In the Hot Spot team.
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I wrote this then. right after I’d posted it, realised it was only 8 words. Ooops! Luckily my husband pointed out I had long term as one word when it should be two so that fixed that:) Phew.
Not sure I agree with you on this one. I’ve met a lot of interesting and engaging people online due to my serial distractedness (including you, Annabel :)). For me, it’s like the difference between a drive along the freeway (fast & efficient) and a leisurely meandering potter up a coastal road, stopping every now and then as my interest is piqued.
I think distractions are your brains way of telling you it’s bored, and if you’re constantly distracted, maybe it’s time to take another critical look at those long term goals. Are they still what you want?
That’s a very interesting perspective!
Stuart – Thank you, I love your pic. I too have met many fabulous people. You included lol. I’ve gained blogging collaborators, blogging buddies, clients, friends and clients who’ve become friends. In fact meeting all those lovely people around the world has been one of the best things about blogging and certainly not something I expected.
It’s not the people on the Internet that I want to spend less time with it’s the flicking from this to that. I need to turn off the Internet, close Gmail, Twitter and FB and write more. When I’ve done that I can get back to the other stuff as my reward. Oh yes, I still want those goals but when it’s a long term plan enthusiasm does ebb and flow. I’m definitely in it for the long haul maybe ebbing a bit at the moment and looking forward to getting back into full flow:)
Inspiring post as ever! But this time, I’m inspired to disagree (a bit :) ). I quite like distractions, and don’t think we should aim to get rid of them, not altogether anyway. This coming from somebody who doesn’t have a hugely pressured job, that she actually enjoys doing. So of course, if you’ve got daily deadlines and want to get home to your family before night, I say: kill the distractions and stay focused. But even then I reckon a healthy dose of distractions can help us stay more focused for shorter busts of time.
So right now I’m supposed to grade a pile of essays and look after my malingering 1st grader at home. I’d much rather be reading your blog! And I know, I hope, that when I get on to the grading I’ll do it more quickly for having spent time being distracted!
Sandrine – Not another person disagreeing. Lol. It looks as if I’m the only Internet addict round here:) There’s a lot of truth in what you and Stuart are saying – that if you’re not in the mood just leave it and go do something else instead. I think because I work from home on the Internet I should probably get out of the house and talk to some people face to face instead of spending my free time surfing the Internet!
It’s like a soap opera out there though. So many new blog posts, so many conversations and developments to follow. I want to know everything there is to know and feel the need to keep up to date with everything. It’s probably not possible so I have to decide who to pay attention to and who gets less of my time. I’m pretty sure I’ll work out a solution to it and get more disciplined too.
I’m probably still on the steep side of the blogging learning curve too and am concentrating on reading and learning as much as I can.
I suppose if you look at it like that I’m not that distracted at all since being the best blogger I can be is one of my main goals!
Hi Annabel,
Another great post! I’m a really big fan of Leo Babauta’s blog as well but I didn’t know Penelope Trunk, so thanks for sharing.
You’re absolutely right, there are so many things coming at us from all sorts of directions these days, that you sometimes lose track of whatever you were doing in the first place. For instance, on a typical evening, I may be keeping an eye on MasterChef, reading my Twitter feed at the same time, checking something on my iPhone calendar, following links from tweets I liked, checking my personal emails, etc… And so I end up with lots of loose ends, emails I’ve only half written or answered, articles I’ve opened in my browser but haven’t read, and on and on!
So yes, one of the things that do help is to start multitasking by focusing on one thing at a time. Do it, finish the task, and then move on to the next item… I’ll definitely keep your 8 words in mind ;-)
Myriam – Thanks for popping by and leaving another long comment too. Penelope Trunk is wonderful and I’ve been having fun on her Brazen Careerist networking site too. That’s part of the problem isn’t it? There’s no end to it. Just when I’ve caught up someone goes and writes another interesting post or starts an interesting thread on Twitter. Ah, you think it’s 8 words do you? Either way, it needs to be acted on:)
Staying focused when working in the Internet is really difficult. There was a time when I had problems with it, but I can say I coped with that problem.
Thanks for sharing this info!
Roman – Thanks for visiting, so glad you found us and dying to know your secrets? What do you do? Unplug?
Hi Annabel,
FOCUSING ON CASH CREATES THE TIME TO GET DISTRACTED
There! A dream business model in 9 words. ;)
Much of my time is spent helping entrepreneurs and big businesses get focused – diamond tip focused on what works commercially and developing the discipline to say “NO” to what doesn’t.
Yes, I like distractions, and yes I like to meander through the web, following wherever my curiosity leads me. It’s a huge part of my creative process that delivers upwards of 100 ideas a week (yes, I count them) ;).
But – I never confuse this creative synthesis process with the commercial focus needed to deliver the financial numbers. The more I focus on making money, the more I make in less time, the more time I have to be free and get distracted. It’s just my way. I do it because it works for me.
Best, Robin :)
Robin – Thank you, you’re a fabulous business coach. It sounds great.
Annabel – I have been a long-time reader of Zen Habits and strive to implement ideas of simplicity. I have recently began your site and I have really enjoyed your comments. I have to totally agree with your post. Maybe it is just me – but I can get lost easily and it is very frustrating. I like what Stuart said about the interstate versus highway and agree that you should meander once and a while. However, if you get too distracted then you will never reach those goals. I used to work 60+ hours a week and travel. I feel just as connected today as I did then and continue to carry a Blackberry. I ‘feel’ that I just can’t get along without it. I should be able to get along w it. Seriously! I keep thinking about the old days when my grandparents would sit on the front porch just talking?? That’s what I want to do. Unplug. Just sit. Thanks for the encouragement, Annabel.
Thanks Laura, great comment. If we contine the travel anology sometimes it’s good to wander, get a bit lost and see what you come across but other times you just need to get to your destination as fast as possible. The porch sounds great. Plenty of unplugged time is definitely a must.
I have ADD so it’s always been a challenge to focus. I have a lot of tricks, but probably the most important is prioritized lists. I know what I need to do each day and in what order. I also give myself notes on timing (like office hours of someplace I need to call). If I find myself putting off something important, I promise myself when I get X done then I can take a fun break and do Y for a while. On that note, back to writing! :)
Hi Jennifer – thanks for suggesting the RSS comment feed. I hope it works a treat. I feel like I have it too but I’ve never done anything about it. I absolutely rely on lists for everything. The reward tatics are good. I need to do my writing first before reading my emails and getting distracted to follow the links in them who knows where.
Ironically, one of the things that I use to distract myself and procrastinate is reading useful blogs. I read one wonderful blog and it leads me to several others and next thing you know I have been gazing at the computer for 3 hours and haven’t accomplished a thing!
Recently, In an effort to stay focused I have pared my readership down from around 50 to 10. Yours is one I am not giving up!
Hi IntentionalFamily – Really lovely to see you here and love the feedback. I think there is a process with the Internet of sorting the essential reading from the interesting reading from the probably shouldn’t be reading! There are a zillion blogs out there. It’s a tough choice and one we’re not used to but you’ve worked out a system. Thanks for making Get In the Hot Spot one of your must reads. Let me know if there’s anything special you’d like me to write about.
I think those 9 words were awesome. I spend so much time running around all day thinking of the things I need to get done only to get distracted putting out little “nothing fires”. I have a habit of not prioritizing the To-Do list and just doing the easy stuff..the stuff that’s actually a distraction from the long term vision. I think the biggest non-fire distraction for me would have to be Twitter..it has the power to suck hours from the day. That and overly critiquing and tinkering with my site Financially Digital.
I was such a fan of this post I had to Tweet it :)
Hi Nunzio, fabulous to hear from you. I think having a 9 word solution helps clear things up too. Twitter can be a danger. Blog and website tinkering takes up a lot of my time too. I don’t know if there’s any end to that though. I’m still sorting out my new design and trying to finish it off. A website is never really done so at some point if things are going reasonably well you have to stop fiddling and start doing what matters most – writing more and writing better. That’s the fun part for me.
Lol. Thank you for tweeting it!
I spend so much time working online that my favorite and most appreciated distractions are the ones that need to occur outside in the sunshine :-)
Connie – You’ve avoided Internet addiction. I’m impressed. I have to get outside every day too, doctor’s orders:) but I’m nearly always thinking up more writing ideas!
Annabel-ha, ha, ha. that was really funny
I agree that distraction can be a big problem in this day and age. Meditation helps me to settle my mind instead of allowing it to run around in distraction. Then it’s far easier to see clearly what I would really like to do and accomplish, instead just being pulled in one direction or another haphazardly. Allowing myself to be distracted by the internet for awhile could be part of the program, but the difference is that I am deciding instead of being pulled willy-nilly one way or the other.
I think distraction is especially a big issue for children these days. Annabel, thanks for raising this issue.
Hi Sandra, haha, not just for chilren, their mum’s are affected too. Meditation sounds appealing. I have tried it but I seem to prioritise reading and walking for solo relaxation. I like that Robin said he gets ideas from surfing the Internet. I suppose I do too so that makes it worthwhile. Thank you for commenting again:)
A tough topic to tackle, no doubt. I mean, for me, your blog and your beautiful writing is a distraction among other goodness. I think staying on task and then rewarding ourselves may work better for me. But my gosh, when you said we may have regrets for spending too much time on the internet, I can see that…..and every day I try to balance it out with other things OFFLINE :)! Thank you Annabel….good stuff !!!
Hi Farnoosh, yes, I have to make sure I don’t miss out on my real life friends, the ones who don’t know what a blog is and have never read one. We need to remember this isn’t the whole world. I agree, keeping on track and then a reward and you’re right, I’d probably choose an offline activity as my reward. Most of my surfing is for work so maybe that’s my problem, I am in work mode at the moment and enjoying it:)
Thank you for sharing…yes I think we are all in the same situation…it can become another addiction…but like everything else one has to find balance..which I must admit…it can be very hard…but also then I say things happen for a reason in life…so sometimes by pressing on a link it can open more life opportunities…
Hi Marthese, lovely thoughtful comments thank you. It’s unbelievable how many opportunities clicking on one link after another has brought to me. In fast I’m going to have to write a post about it. Thank you!
I agree with Jennifer – I keep a list of things I need to get done, then I give myself to get distracted and go with the flow a little. I do learn a lot that way and think Stuart’s right too. Sometimes we’re so crazed to follow a certain path that we miss the wonderful distractions life has to bring us. What a wildly complex topic you’ve brought up. Nice job!
Marly, thank you for saying it’s complex! I think all these comments and mine many of which I’ve noticed are contradictory are showing that. I know if I did a pros and cons of the Internet what would come out on top:)
Another great post, Annabel. I seem to be particular subject to distraction.
As a newish blogger, I need to be out there on the net connecting with people, commenting and posting in forums, but I’m never sure how much is enough.
What I really need to be doing, of course, is writing high-quality content for my own blog.
I also need to be proofreading my posts before I hit Submit.
“Particularly”.
I do a lot of commenting on blogs too. In fact I wish I’d kept a record of all of them. I think it would make a book. You’ve got the key there – content first, networking (socialising) second. Personally I need to stop proofreading so much. No one will care if there’s the odd typo, let’s not worry about that stuff so much.
Great post! I sometimes wish we could go back to the 70s or 80s and live life without all of these “modern techie conveniences” – no laptop no email (and I run 2 web bizs), no cell phone/texting, not 5000 TV channels, not even GPS (I’d be lost constantly) but…. I’d still go back.
Why? Everything seemed so much lighter then – to me, it seems all of our connectedness basically left us disconnected. Hmm.. I think I’ll use that on Facebook. :)
So – anyone want to join me – if only for a day?
xo
~ Lee
p.s. ~ I just retweeted from @sparkleplenty1 & @madnessmomandme
Hi Lee, “our connectedness basically left us disconnected” that’s what I think too sometimes. It’s all about reacting to emails, links, beeps and TV schedules without looking inside yourself and just doing whatever you’d normally do…. a walk outside probably. Lol. I’ll take Saturdays off. I like writing on Sunday if I can get time and as long as I don’t just get on the computer and do other things:) Ooh, thanks for the tweets too. It all helps!
Hi Annabel,
Ah, the love-hate relationship with modern technologies’ advantages and pit-falls. I think we often allow ourselves to be distracted when we don’t have a clear idea, at some level, of what our goal is, how to achieve it or a really clear deadline for achieving it. There was a study done by the Stanford School of Business, and cited by the American Society for Training and Development (sorry I don’t have the exact date–I’m still looking for it) which found that if you actually set a firm date to achieve a goal (or some other behaviour), the probability of accomplishing your goal is 40%, if you commit to someone else to complete the action the probability goes up to 65% and if you set a specific accountability appointment,the likelihood of accomplishing your goal zooms up to 95%! Maybe we should be using our social media tools for setting accountability appointments with our friends then we’ll have to stay focused to get complete the actions we commit to! There’s some food for thought, for you!
Cheers,
Sue
Hi Sue, brilliant thoughts, thanks for sharing them and that research is priceless. I love to have things backed up by stats, it makes it so much more convincing. Re: Maybe we should be using our social media tools for setting accountability appointments with our friends then we’ll have to stay focused to get complete the actions we commit to! That is so powerful and I use it myself here on my blog (for example https://www.getinthehotspot.com/5-simple-steps-to-planning-for-success/ where I lay out my 10 week plan and in a fit of madness say that I’m going for 15,000 subscribers after another year of blogging. Help! That’s going to be a tough one. It definitely makes me work harder and I’m encouraged and motivated by comments like yours too. I often encourage people to leave a comment telling me what their dream is, what they want and how they’re going to get it. I had one friend who (afer reading for 9 months) said she wanted to be a zoo keeper and several readers whose outlandish plans make mine look boring and safe. I applaud them.
I do see us as a motivated team who cheer each other on and am so happy to be part of it. I’ve been thinking that the natural place for more of that is a forum but there must be more ways we can support each other here on the blog too. Any ideas just say. Thanks Sue:)
Hi Annabel,
Concentration on our goal is one of the best things we can do to stay focused. If we are concentrated on our task and if we don’t allow anything to interrupt us, we then accomplish our goals.
Thanks for sharing :)
Funny thing about distractions – I’ve discovered that when I really need to put things aside and get something done, I’m very hard to distract. I do, however, succumb to inordinate amounts of ‘research’ when I’m building up to this point :)
I love Leo’s blog, too. Highly inspiring.
Thanks for another great post.
I think one of Lou Holtz (former football coach of Notre Dame) sayings is appropriate for keeping things in perspective. He said, “WIN stands for, What’s Important Now”. Perfect for our times and all the distractions around us. After 3 days without internet and TV, I discovered some great reading material that I would have missed if I’d been online!
Thanks Annabel!
Barbara
Hi Annabel,
Thanks for the 9 words…just wrote about my procrastination delimma at my blog. After reading your post, I think maybe I procrastinate due, in part to all of the outside distractions…Have made a vow to remain focused from here & continue to see growth in my blogging/freelance writing biz.
Clara.
Distractions are part of new lifestyle. I think the boundaries between real life and virtual world are slowly getting washed away. People are becoming more n more exposed to the open lifestyle. I remember when we didn’t had TV, life was so simple. The only means of entertainment was a blaring radio. Then TV came with single channel and then with 100 of channels, and now we can’t live without it. Same is the case with internet. Along with distraction, gone is the privacy. The more you are online, the more you are exposed to web of people. With twitter, its getting even worse. I think it’s part and parcel of lifestyle we are so fond of and there is nobody to blame but ourselves.
[…] How to Stay Focused in 9 Words – Annabel Candy […]
I like the idea of “first things first”. Instead of trying to multitask, just get the first job done, then move on to the next, one after the other, til all are done. It’s a very satisfying experience :)
Yes and no on this one.
Hey Annabel Great post and I yes strongly agree, we all find ourselves doing this, I even have a phrase for It, Link Hopping, It can be distracting and at times. I myself try to stay with the program but on the flip side I have to say that is what I was doing when I found your blog. SO with the short couple of days that I have been diving into your writings I must say that I am glad I did stay off track that day. So my point would be there has to be some time constraints. I am new with Blogging and so is my site, but I try to set reminders to help limit myself, and I have found that just adding a floating note pad on my desktop so when I find great posts and sites like yours I just stash your link there and go back and decide later if the site is worth following. Anyway just my way that seems to work . We all know getting back to a bookmark just to read a post seems to always get lost.
Have a great one, and I’ll be moving you off the note pad and onto the toolbar ha ha good stuff here. Thanks ………vern
Hi Annabel,
Terrific post…focused time is the only way to accomplish anything. Your brain loses momentum when you are distracted and then have to remember where you were etc.
What has helped me to stay focused on certain tasks like writing a blog post, checking email-twitter-facebook, is to use a timer. I set 10 minutes for email, 1 hour for each blog post, and 10 minutes for twitter.
This keeps me incredibly focused on each of my daily tasks.
Keep up the great writing and contributions.
Mark
Hi Annabel,
Fantastic post, full of great advice and inspiration to get moving. I totally agree with you, as long as we allow ourselves to be distracted, we will not be able to fully engage on the actions that will get us closer to accomplish our goals.
Nowadays, with all the distractions around us, it is harder than ever to accomplish being focused. However there are two great reminders for us that it is indeed possible.
The first one, well, the people that currently are very successful, they are being exposed to all the same amount of distractions than the rest of us, but they have managed to achieve what our good friend Robin Dickinson would call “Diamond-tip focus”. So it is possible. If they can do it, so do we.
The second reminder, are the wise words you continuously share with us in your outstanding blog posts. Particularly today’s lesson:
“Identify distractions. Remove them. Remember your long term goals.”
Short, simple, to the point … brilliant.
Great stuff Annabel!!
Ivan
Love that the 9 words are really 8. I caught it because I wasn’t distracted by my many distractions.
Ha!
Truer words were never spoke. I could add Laundry as a distraction and re-organizing my closets. They seem like productivity and are really just avoidance tactics.
Thank you
So I’m printing your words out now (Identify distractions. Remove them. Remember your long term goals) and taping them to the bottom of my computer screen as a reminder. If I keep looking at them, does that count as a distraction, lol? I just discovered your blog today and I’ve been reading your posts for almost 30 minutes. I’m delighted by this latest discovery, uh, I mean distraction. :)
True! Those 9 words is the exact way we can really focus and do things that gives value..
This is also one of my problems i have a hard time staying focus to my goals specially if I’m online there’s just too many distractions from social networking to surfing the web. I’m glad i have read your article at least now i have an idea how to stay focused.
I have been visiting ur site for a couple of days. really enjoy what you posted. btw i’m conducting a research relating to this area. do you happen to know other blogs or forums where I might get more information? thanks a lot.