It happens to all of us. We are working on a project when all of a sudden, a thought comes into our head. What is the weather going to be like tomorrow? Who is winning in the big game? I wonder what crazy thing happened in the news? What are people on social media saying about literally anything?
The issue with social media vis-a-vis the consumer is that social media is designed to keep us on it and scrolling infinitely, hitting and being exposed to ads, memes, and gifs. It is so easy to simply get lost in social media or distracted by literally anything these days.
So what can we do in order to keep ourselves focused on the task at hand? Especially when it is something boring and that we do not want to do? Well, here are some tips which may help you out.
Create focus slowly
If you think that these tips will enable you to focus for five hours straight right off the bat, then you are reading the wrong article. Our (completely unscientific) recommendation is that you start off slow, and eventually work your way up to that five hour mark over time. What you can do is try and focus on something for 30 minutes, relax and goof off for 10, then focus for 30 more.
You will eventually begin to focus more and more, and then you will be able to focus for several hours without a break. This is exactly like marathon training, except instead of physically running, you are training your mind how to get stronger.
Write down your random thoughts
Let’s be real, you do not really need to be on social media 24/7. You can stay off of it and focus on your work if you really want to and actually put your mind to it. But every time you want to go look something up or text someone something instead of doing work, just PHYSICALLY write it down on a notepad or a notebook.
That way, you will not be distracted by opening a different tab on your computer, and you will be able to get straight back to work. Also, you will not have to worry about accidentally deleting anything, as you will have it already written down. You can go back and check whatever you wrote while you are on your break.
Read long articles in your spare time
What ever happened to those long form, super in depth articles about music, politics, international relations, or even just stories? Not novels, but just a long article that takes over a half hour to read? Well it turns out that they still exist, you just need to know where they are.
If you want to read about international politics, economics, or just be entertained long form articles can be found in various magazines, journals. You can read Foreign Policy, The Economist, The Atlantic, or even the New York Times or Wall Street Journal for long form news. If you want something lighter, there are always great stories in the New Yorker as well as great music news in Rolling Stone.
