Unfocused? Focus on this!

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. At least in my opinion. You have just survived another six months and it is finally time for some reflection and hopefully some peace and quiet.

Are you a person that “believes” you feel fulfilled after a long day of hard work, finishing one task after the other? Your everyday life is crammed with hundreds of e-mails, notifications in slack, chat messages in teams and a frenetic thumb tapping on your Instagram whilst you have no clue to why you are even doing it – everything just happens with an awesome flow!

High-five to you. You are a freaking Duracell rabbit 🔋 on speed and everyone adores you. Good job!

But, could it be the other way around? Imagine a life without notifications and hundreds of tasks? You have time to focus and get into deep thinking, finishing greater tasks that actually makes your business thrive. That is what we all want, right?

Focus is the new IQ

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If you strive for better innovation, better strategies and faster execution, you should probably focus on focus. Everybody can finish short term tasks and do incremental improvements in a stressful environment. But, If you are successful to rig yourself and your company to find more focus time, you will be happier and your company will continue to perform and create a competitive advantage. In the end, maybe that is your only competitive advantage?

The good thing with focus is that you can train it and there are some easy tips ans trix on how you can smooth sail into the focus winds.

Of course there are several books on this topic. So if you want to install yourself in the hammock this summer you should have a look at these recommendations: 

1. Deep Work, by Cal Newport.
   He points out that the skillset of deep thinking is becoming increasingly rare. Instead of arguing distraction is bad, he instead celebrates the power of its opposite.
   
   
2. Indistractable: how to control your attention and choose your life, by Nir Eyal.
   He shows what life could look like if you followed through on your intentions. He reveals the hidden psychology driving you to distraction, and teaches you how to make pacts with yourself to keep your brain on track.

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And now some tips for you

A digital detox is probably not the solution. We are going to have to learn how to best navigate in this mess and find ways to allow ourselves to be focused. Below is my four step cure on how to get started. 

Firstly

Only check the mailbox one to three times a day.

You as a reader is thinking: OMG, the man behind the pen must be insane…

When you feel the urge to check your inbox, you should think like how you are sorting your snail mail. 🐌

You either trow it away, archive it, fix it immediately or save it for later.

Secondly

Do not use subfolders. This will save you a bunch of time. Trust the search function, it really works.

You as a reader is thinking: OMG again, the Writer is really insane.

Thirdly

Have a Zero-inbox when the day comes to an end. 

You as a reader is thinking: OMG, that would be very satisfying. 

Fourthly

Get rid of the endless loop of thoughts. Write them down! On a piece of paper. 

You as a reader is thinking: OMG, the writer is a saint. 

😀

The final words

Hope you are inspired to use the time you are about to enter to reflect on how much of your everyday life is focus vs. the Duracell rabbit. And you know what they say about September? It’s the real New Year and your resolution should definitely be more focus!

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🌻🌻🌻

Happy holidays and happy focus!

Magnus