Why You Shouldn’t Just Replace Your Distractions With More Work

Why You Shouldn’t Just Replace Your Distractions With More Work

We’re bombarded with distractions all day, and it’s simple enough to block them out. However, most of the time, we avoid these distractions only to replace them with additional work. Instead of making yourself busier, dare to be bored.

Photo by Yudis Asnar.

Sometimes boredom is what we really need to refocus. There are so many opportunities to stimulate ourselves that we sometimes forget what it’s like to simply stare out of a window and daydream. Or go for a walk and get lost in the the calmness of nature.

Researcher and author Cal Newport has praised the benefits of doing less before, and Forbes sums up his idea about craving distractions:

“Once you’re wired for distraction, you crave it,” writes Newport. He says you need to rewire your brain so that it’s more likely to stay focused. To that end, instead of carving work hours out of the time that you are otherwise preoccupied by Facebook, Twitter and email, schedule your Internet use and then otherwise avoid it. “Outside of those times, the default is to do none of those activities. It helps your mind get more comfortable with being bored, with being free from novel stimuli at all times,” he says. “That comfort is necessary to support deep work down the line.”

In other words, don’t be afraid to be bored every now and then. For more tips for finding focus, head to the full post below.

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World [Cal Newport via Forbes]


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