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If we zoom in on the “distracting work” quadrant back in the first chapter, we can
divide it up based on two criteria: whether or not we have control
over the distractions
and whether we find them annoying or fun.
If you allocated your professional activities into the four-typesof-work grid in chapter
1, use the tasks in the distracting quadrant as a starting point to fill out the grid on the
next page. There will be a number of items to add
—your distractions grid should contain
every single thing, no matter how small, that draws you away from your intentions in the
moment. It should also include distractions that aren’t specifically work related—such as
the news
and social media websites you visit as you work. I won’t ask you to do many
exercises
as you read this book, but when I do include them, it’s definitely for a good
reason. (I’ve uploaded printable versions of both charts to this book’s website:
hyperfocusbook.com.)
To illustrate what a filled-out grid looks like, here are the typical distractions that
throw off my intentions throughout the course of a day:
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Let’s start with the top two quadrants—how to deal with distractions and interruptions
that we
can’t
control.
There are two places from which distractions originate
—ourselves and others—and
both are important to deal with ahead of time. We can’t prevent all distractions from
arising
—even if we closed our office door with the intent to hyperfocus for a couple of
hours, we’d still receive phone calls and the occasional knock at the door. Many
distractions are preventable, but many aren’t, at least not without incurring large social
costs. Research shows, however, that we interrupt ourselves just as much as we are
interrupted by other people.
*
As
Gloria Mark expressed it, “Simply looking at how we
can break off external interruptions really only solves half the problem.”
Distractions from others aren’t quite as damaging as the times we interrupt
ourselves. It takes us an average of twenty-nine minutes to resume a task after we have
interrupted our own work
—however, we get back on track around six minutes more
quickly if we
’re interrupted by someone else. Whether it’s
twenty-nine minutes or
twenty-
three minutes, we’re still missing out on a lot of productivity. This is one of
myriad reasons why periodically checking what’s occupying our attentional space is so
helpful. When we notice distractions have veered us off course, we waste less
time on
distracting tasks and get back on track more quickly.
While we can’t prevent interruptions from arising, we can control how we respond to
them. The best way to deal with annoying tasks
that we can’t keep from hijacking our
attentional space
—office visitors,
loud colleagues, and unnecessary meetings
included
—is to keep our original intention in mind and get back to working on it as soon
as possible.
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We should also be more deliberate about how we respond to the
fun
distractions we
can’t control. Of all the advice I offer in this book, this is the tactic I’ve struggled with the
most. I’m often so gung-ho in accomplishing my intentions that I become rigid and
grumpy when I’m interrupted—regardless of how enjoyable the interruption might be. As
I’ve found, though, the best possible way to respond to pleasurable, controllable
distractions
—like team lunches and calls from loved ones when I’m in the middle of
something
—is to make a concerted effort to embrace and actually allow myself to
enjoy
them but still get back on track when I’m able. Fretting over things you simply can’t
control
is a waste of time, energy, and attention. I’ve gradually learned to use these
interruptions as a cue to lighten up a bit and embrace whatever fun derailed my
productivity
—while periodically recalling my original intention so I can get back on track
when I have the opportunity.
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