“Simplicity is ultimately a matter of focus.” — Ann Voskamp
Our world has become a constant feed of information, noise, and entertainment. Our phones live not just in our pockets, but in front of our eyes. The influence of the Internet and its constant stream of information is accessible from nearly corner of our world. Breaking news breaks into our day at breakneck speed. And we are fed messages relentlessly from advertisements on nearly every flat surface. Each distraction enters our mind with one goal: Gain control of our attention and resources.
As a result, we live distracted lives and our ability to focus, create, and accomplish suffers significantly. It is increasingly clear that distractions are not going away on their own. Instead, the responsibility is ours to live attentive, intentional lives in a world of distraction. This is a goal we must continue to seek.
To live life with less distraction, consider implementing one or more of these 10 unconventional habits:
1. Turn off smart phone notifications. Our smart phones have quickly become one of the greatest sources of distraction in our lives. The average person now touches their mobile phone 2,617 times every day.
To limit the distractive nature of your smart phone, turn off all nonessential notifications (Email, Facebook, Twitter, Games, etc.) as a default setting. As a result, you will be able to check your apps on your schedule at appropriate times throughout the day.
2. Read/Answer email only twice each day. When we keep our email client open all day, we surrender our attention to the most recent bidder rather than the most important. The sooner we realize this, the sooner we understand why the habit of checking email only twice/day is promoted over and over again by some of the most productive people in our world today (Michael Hyatt, Scott Belsky, Leo Babauta).
Schedule your email processing. You will feel the benefits immediately as the habit instantly limits incoming distraction.
3. Complete 1-2 minute projects immediately. Our lives and minds are often cluttered and distracted by the many unfinished projects around us (unanswered email, household chores, financial responsibilities). Fortunately, many of these projects can be completed in far less time than we think. To live with less distraction, if a project can be completed in less than 2 minutes, adopt a “one-minute-rule” mentality.
4. Remove physical clutter. Unnecessary clutter is a significant form of visual distraction. Consider this: everything in our eyesight subtly pulls at our attention at least a little. And the more we remove, the less visual stress and distraction we experience. Clear your desk, your walls, your counters, and your home of unneeded possessions. You’ll be surprised at your newfound ability to focus.
5. Clear visible, distracting digital clutter. Just like physical clutter distracts our attention, digital clutter accomplishes the same. Desktop icons, open programs, and other visible notifications jockey for unannounced attention in our mind. Notice the digital triggers that grab your attention. And ruthlessly remove them.
6. Accept and accentuate your personal rhythms. Discover the rhythms of your day to make the most of them. For example, I do my best creative work in the morning, afternoons work well for busy-work, and evenings are set aside for family—leaving late evenings for entertainment, rest, and guilt-free distraction.
Accepting and understanding our natural rhythms to the day/week provides healthy motivation to remove distractions during our most productive parts of the day knowing there is opportunity later to indulge them
7. Establish a healthy morning routine. Henry Ward Beecher once said, “The first hour is the rudder of the day.” He was absolutely right. Begin your days on your terms apart from distraction. If possible, wake first in your household. Drink your coffee or tea or fix yourself a warm breakfast. Journal or read or just enjoy the silence. Develop a distraction-free morning routine. It will lay the foundation for a less-distracted day.
8. Cancel cable / Unplug television. It is difficult to argue against the distracting nature of our television. Researchers tell us the average American watches 37-40 hours of television each week. There is, of course, a solution to this madness: unplug your television completely.
But if this step seems too drastic a stretch for your family, you’ll never regret the simple decision to cancel cable. Your calendar will thank you for the extra time available. Your wallet will thank you for the extra dollars. And you’ll quickly wonder why you didn’t do it sooner.
9. Keep a to-do list. One of the most helpful and practical pieces of advice I ever received about keeping focus is the simple solution of keeping a to-do list handy and current. No matter how hard you try to manage yourself, new responsibilities and opportunities will surface in your mind from internal and external sources.
The opportunity to quickly write down the task allows it to be quickly discarded from your mind. I use Clear as a simple, easy-to-use opportunity list.
10. Care less what other people think. The value of your life is not measured by the number of likes your Facebook post receives or the number of positive comments on your blog post. Please understand, there is great value in humbly seeking opinion and appreciating the wise counsel of those who love you.
But there is no value in wasting mental energy over the negative criticism of those who only value their own self-interests. Learn to recognize the difference. And stop living distracted over the opinion of people who don’t matter.
There is little doubt our world is filled with constant distraction—it always has been. And there is little doubt that those who achieve the greatest significance in life learn to manage it effectively—they always have.
Image: Richard Ruzsa
Carole says
My husband and I didn’t even have smart phones until recently. We had cell phones, but they were for emergency purposes only. We upgraded a couple of years ago. I needed a couple of capabilities that I didn’t have on my own phone, but even at that, I don’t live on my phone. I don’t even particularly like talking on the phone.
We’re pretty lucky in that we already live relatively low key lives. We live rural-ish (it’s not as rural as it once was), yet within close enough proximity to larger areas. We have never had cable. We’ve never watched enough tv to make it worthwhile, and have never needed it for reception purposes. At this point in time we watch even less tv than we used to.
I admit I still get caught up in caring about what other people think, but for me, it’s more about self esteem than anything else. An area I’m still working on. ;-)
Jana says
For me, it was more radical steps. It was a conscious decision to destroy my cell phone, give away my television, throw out the answering machine, stop turning on the radio, and stop buying newspapers.
Life instantly becamemuch more peaceful, more relaxed, I began to sleep beter, and I was able to give every aspect of daily life my full attention.
It’s funny, but now some of my stressed-out friends are considering doing the same thing.
I’d like to think a quiet revolution is beginning – one where people decide to take control of more than just their time and attention, but their absolute power to stop an insanely materialistic society from worming it’s way into their lives – after all, if you don’t have the gadgets anymore, commercialism can’t reach you to manipulate you.
So, with no cell phone, no tv, and a big, red sign over my letterbox that says “no junk mail!” (because I’ll charge every company for my time in having to even look at their junk mail if they continue to have them stuffed in my letterbox), life feels a whole lot better.
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Rob Gray says
So if I’m to cancel smartphone notifications does that mean I have to buy one :)
Heck I often turn my $29 dumb phone off to save power and remember a week later that it’s still off.
Matthew says
That is as god a list as any…but what is up with that photo choice. Why is there a creepy picture of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad lurking behind some woman on the street? Odd choice.
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Michael Raymond Bartley says
me, me, me=== watch after me and my need for my time and for my way of communication. This list seems to be to be very self-center and not a healthy way to form community unless it is the community of one that seems to be common among many youth today.
Michael Raymond Bartley says
I want an uncluttered life because of Jess. I didn’t see Jesus hear. I saw a very self serving need to disconnect and take care of the self and often avoid the reality of how people communicate and how people relate. This list reminds me of the fundamentalist screaming can’t we just recover the dial phone and return to the 50’s. Not a very interest list.
Me_In_Dixon says
People are watching more TV because they DON’T HAVE WORK!
If you really consider this whole ‘list’ thing..it’s another way that society is being led by their noses towards? what? maybe 90 people having more money than the remaining 7 billion on earth today?
Not a believer in this list,not at all.Be your own leader,stop being led like sheep and take control of your own lives.
Karen says
And pardon me for saying but I know of many that don’t have work because they are to enslaved to all the stuff…tv, video games, fb, instagram, texting, and it’s just much easier to take a government hand out than to have to leave the couch, video games and social media than it is to beat the payment searching for work. I see tons of signs for employment posted at businesses everywhere. May not be the highest paying but it’s better than giving up until ya get something else.
Karen says
The list is a wonderful idea by the way. I’ve been fasting from different foods,fb, tv, all radio except Christian, no restraunt foods, cooking nutritional suppers every night this week, sitting at table together only the last week. And my point during this fast I cried out to God to lead and direct me with my bogged down life. My house full of stuff and clothes, to much cleaning, overwhelmed extremely, no time for family. And very little time spent with the one I love, honor and respect in my life that gave His own life for me. One whom loves me like no other does or ever will…my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And with Him I should be giving my utmost attention… but I haven’t been. Two days ago He took me to your post by accident. I have been devouring it ever since. It’s not that I didn’t already know some of these things…but it put it in a perspective that made sense to me. And hearing someone else’s experiences help me to relate better. It may sound silly to some but it has changed my life. It gave me the motivation I needed. My husband whom is fasting with me saw how excited I am and is helping me. When you said you wanted that Hotel clutter free straight neat look. Awwe…you described me to a t. I have already begun my own kitchen declutter list. You gave me many great ideas. I’m starting with one colored pottery plate each. Glass etc.Two nice oven mitts, One ink pen each of different styles. I’m even tackling all the “stuff” in the China cabinet . Just want to say Thank You for putting this all together. God is truly using you for something “BIG”… and that is to help motivate, teach and encourage those of us that need that extra boost to be able to take our lives back for God and our families and to empower us to balance our lives. May God richly bless you!
Karen says
The first response I made on …January 9th at 2:30 pm was in regards to the negative comment made by (Me_In_Dixon) on January 26th 2014. I’m sure your use to the negative…but never think you are not helping many out there…because you are and you deserve to know!
Wendy says
Thanks for this. These habits are truly countercultural. I’m glad I live by a few of them already, and I definitely need to adopt more items on your list. We got rid of cable and tv over 3 years ago and never looked back. This single step alone, has led to our children rarely viewing advertisements. It almost immediately changed how our children desired less stuff. Though that was not even our goal — we really only wanted to save a few bucks. I grew up eating dinner from the sofa while watching Jeopardy and Seinfeld reruns and all those commercials in between. It’s probably just a small thing, but my husband and I raise our children differently. My family only streams movies from our computer when we choose to have a movie night and we eat all three meals at the dining room table with only each other’s faces to look at. Inevitably, conversation ensues. Imagine that?! Oh, and I changed the settings on my smartphone after reading the first item.