10% of 10 things is not 100%

I think between our phones and updates and emails, between messages and appointments happening across multi dimensional apps, overlapping deadlines and goals; All of the things that currently exist in 2019, i've just recently found myself becoming overwhelmed with being able to sit down and focus on anything long enough to give my projects the energy i feel they deserve.

This in turn leads me to procrastinating or seeking fast gratification to escape the vast amount of stress I feel lingering over my head or feeling guilt about putting off the things I know i should be doing. Sometimes they're such large undertakings I don't even know where to begin, sooooooooo i prolong it even longer by doing busywork like making myself an overly complex meal, going for a longer run or doing a minor project around the house to bury that guilt with a false sense of "productivity" I thought i was multi tasking and "chipping away" at attaining my goals but all I was achieving was a disservice to my ambitions.

The last year I've broken the cycle and committed myself to exploring a better way to work. I've decided to take a break to build a better habits.

I've been teaching myself how to focus so i could start kicking some ass again instead of just sitting on mine.

So lets break that down in 4 steps

Multitasking

One of the first things i think we need to talk about when it comes to becoming more focused is "multitasking." Doing 10% of 10 things does not equate to 100%. Read that again. Because there are so many things going on at once we often try to trick ourselves into thinking that its a good idea to be doing many different projects. The illusion is the promise that you've doubled or tripled your output and that you're "getting so much done" but in reality your doing many jobs poorly and widening the gaps in inefficiency. The reality is that it never goes according to plan, your deadlines bleed into the next and you more often than not experience scope creep, theres communication delays, thoughts become scattered or forgetful and theres an overall drop in enthusiasm for the multiple projects. You can't be in two places at once.

Heres my tip: Rank everything for the longterm. Start with a moodboard or a chart or however you need to process this visually; but start with your name in the centre. now stem outward from your name with all the things that are important to your current self that demand and occupy your time: Clients, Family, Friends, Accounts, Money, Specific Projects, Goals etc. Now once you're done use a number system to rank these things using a 3 stars from least important with long term objectives in mind keeping short term goals off the board unless they're deadlines for something because that feeds into long term ideals.

I suggest that you then arrange all three star items chronologically. Congratulations; you've just created a list that is going to save your life when you think theres a million things you need to be doing. You have a list of your highest priorities its easier to decide what tasks to apply yourself to when you have a limited amount of time to work. Pro tip: put this list on the front page of your phone so you have it on you at all times.

Every time you reference this list, focus in on that one item with 100% effort until that task is complete. no checking Instagram, no distractions. 100% If you have large projects that obviously cannot be completed in a short time frame, break it down into realistic, attainable and short term tasks. Its better to commit fully to the three star items at the beginning of the day when your energy level and ambition are at their highest.

Distractions

Short term gratification vs long term gratification. Distractions come at us every moment of the day. They range from memes, eating a meal, Netflix, "rewarding yourself" checking your phone to penning a self help article for accountability on Linkedin about avoiding distractions. how many times in the span of an hour do you think you check your phone? I dare you to check. Its embarrassing. You don't even know how habitual it is until you begin to track it. We pay no mind to these minor distractions and the greater role they play with our ability to get things done, not to mention the role they play in our energy and our moods. Our focus can be shifted very easily. Its important to entertain these distractions as you would a sales pitch; "is this going to be helpful to me short term or long term?"

Look; if you're working 13 hour days: by all means take in two hours of Netflix, eat that ice cream, go on that date or hit the gym. We all need some short term distractions for work/life balance to avoid burning out (more on that later) These distractions are productive to recharge for the next challenges. We just need to be aware of how many short term distractions you're allowing into your life ESPECIALLY if they're often, occurring back-to-back or several in a row. If you notice you're pursuing short term gratification over and over again; you're too distracted. You need to anchor down on one long term goal. Try rewarding yourself with a single short term distraction after you finish 2-3 tasks on that list. You'll feel better and the 3:1 cost/output ratio of your time will be in the projects favour.

Reward

Whats the point of all this work without receiving your personal pat on the back? Reward is the fun part of focusing. You deserve a reward for your effort and sacrifice, so long as you keep your productivity ratios in place. Learn the discipline to say "no" to Tuesday night plans knowing you have to prepare for a Wednesday deadline; but also allow yourself to let loose on Friday knowing that you put the work in when and where it counted. Commit yourself to eating healthy/going to the gym/studying or practicing your professional skills so you can have a cheat day on the weekend eating whatever you want or being lazy. These rewards encourage us to hold steady to our projects with a reward to balance it out. You have to rewire your brains rewards system so that they are not constantly choosing fast and fleeting highs over long and earned bliss points.

Bliss points are things that you earn. Things you have to work for. At the end of a run and you push for that last 100m sprint and when you break through those last few strides you get a runners high. At the end of an arduous RFP when you win over a picky client and you sign the contract you feel that rush of a job well done. You cant get that kind of feeling without putting in the work. Its being rewarded for your efforts what fuels motivation do these things. Working for these bliss points is what makes us feel better on a grander scale and to earn them we have do the work that needs to be done that frees our minds from the weight that they carry. To push ourselves further, to make us strive for more. This feeds into our motivation and back into our focus

Perspective

Choosing your thoughts like you choose to put on your clothes every morning. If you can pick a perspective that helps you focus you can in-turn get so much more done. You can be scared about a daunting task, "oh my god this is going to be SO much work" "I don't think i can do this" These are all perspectives. Instead of thinking about failure or burden, try to tackle the project like you don't have a dog in the fight and have some fun with it... "if i was to take this on, what would need to be accomplished?" Break the mountain into boulders. The journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step so be playful and realistic about what needs to be done to accomplish the goal. From there it won't seem so daunting. Tap into the task at hand. Change is growth and it can be fun if you open yourself up to it with an optimistic outlook.

Closing

I hope that some of this helps those of you who feel overwhelmed, who might be hard on themselves or looking for a bit of guidance on how to bring some clarity to their projects.

If you commit yourself and audit your behaviour accordingly you'd be happy to find that your focus might actually begin to match your ambition

-Steve Rock