In our last post, we discussed staying on task with your annual goals. But how can we stay focused? One thing to consider is our work environment. Is it conducive for what we’re trying to accomplish? What distractions might there be?
When we are focused, all our energy is concentrated in one direction. Every time we become distracted, that attentiveness is drawn elsewhere and our energy level diminishes. Any idea how long it takes to get back on track? It takes an average of about 25 minutes (23 minutes and 15 seconds, to be exact) to return to the original task after an interruption, according to Gloria Mark who studies digital distraction at the University of California, Irvine. Per your DiSC(R) style, those who are more likely to lose focus are those who have more of the "D" or "I" dimension, tending to be faster-paced than those who have more "S" or "C".
Like many of you, I pride myself on being a multi-tasker and many of us are, but we need to be realistic. Let’s not fool ourselves. When we multi-task, our thought processes are going to be divided among the various tasks; so these need to be tasks that alone do not need a great deal of focus. And we all have those. What I’m discussing here are the bigger items, the ones that do require a great deal of focus and mental energy.
For me, since I work from my home office where both my computer and my telephone are at my desk, I tend to move myself over to the dining room table. There, I spread out my materials in a clean space and away from those distractions. The “screen” is not in sight and if the phone rings, I can just let it go to voicemail (which I could do if I were sitting at my desk as well, but tend not to). When I’m out, I always have my master prioritized to-do list with me and other reading material. If I find myself with some downtime between appointments, in a coffee shop, waiting for someone, I have a quieter space in which to focus. Airplanes work well, too.
“Energy is the essence of life. Every day, you decide how you’re going to use it by knowing what you want and what it takes to reach that goal, and by maintaining focus.”
– Oprah Winfrey