Machines are robbing us of our ability to focus. We are giving ourselves a new version of attention deficit disorder literally by our device. Between email, twitter, laptops, phones, and tablets we have fallen into habits of distraction that cause our concentration and focus to wander. This unfortunately ends up causing stress and inefficiency. I challenge myself for the next few days to stay on task at whatever I am doing whether it be work, preparing dinner, or spending time with my kids. I have laid out a few simple rules for myself to de-clutter and simplify my life.
1. Pick a task–focus from start to completion without allowing any interruptions.
2. Schedule correspondence times– check email on the hour or half hour only –then respond only to urgent ones.
3. Maintain human contact–keep eye contact in conversation and focus.
Hopefully this will help keep me completely in the moment and able to enjoy each conversation, each moment and to really take more time to smell the roses. I love Sherry Turkle’s segment entitled “Alone Together” as I really think it depicts our loneliness as a society in this tech driven age.
