It’s Past Time for You to Get Into Some Deep…Work!

Photo Credit: Christina @ wocintechchat.com on unsplash.com

Issue #25 Topic Category: Productivity

Does this describe you?

• You wake up in the morning and the first thing you do is check your phone: statuses from your friends, the news and weather, and a gazillion emails.
• You decide to check just one thing on social media, and the next thing you know, you’ve been down that rabbit hole for an hour or more.
• If you’re WFH, you think you’ll do just one load of laundry, but end up tidying up just one corner of one room. Those necessary tasks will take just a few minutes, right?
• Once you finally get to your desk, knowing full well what you want to get done during the day, dings, buzzes, reminders, interruptions, and even more email notifications disrupt your time again and again.
• And let’s not even talk about endless meetings, either on Zoom or in-person…do they ever stop?
• Finally, it’s the end of your workday, and you’ve accomplished almost nothing. Almost all of your tasks and activities are pushed back to the next day or worse, the next week.

So multiple distractions are the problem. What is the solution??

The answer to your dilemma is called “Deep Work.”

What IS “Deep Work?”?

The official definition: Deep work is the process of setting aside significant and regular blocks of uninterrupted time to do truly meaningful work on your most important projects.

You must shut down the distractions or you’ll constantly find yourself spending “dollar time on penny activities.”

You have to replace the things you do that are not directly leading you to achieve your goals with those that will match your goals.?

Author Cal Newport coined the term in his 2016 book, “Deep Work: Rules for Focus Success in a Distracted World.”

I am constantly in awe of people who seem to be able to get so much done in the same 24 hours that I have. My daughter, a writer, poet, spoken word artist, and tenured professor, has just finished her seventh book. Many people publish multiple books in a relatively short amount of time.?

I am still trying to update my 2nd book, and I have plans for three more books. But when? I guess it’s time for me to put the “deep work” principles in place for my own work time.

Why and how should you implement Deep Work?

We can talk about the importance of deep work all day, but if we don’t make the changes necessary to implement it, it is all just talk.

Here are five ways to implement deep work for yourself (picks up my pen to take notes):

1. Plan your day and week ahead of time and “Eat That Frog” first. Here is a recent LinkedIn article I wrote about how to eat the frog. Block out your deep work time the first thing in your workday.
2. Create rituals for your workday by deciding when, where, and how long you’ll focus on your deep work.?
3. Implement time blocking or use the Pomodoro technique developed by Francesco Cirillo to break up your deep work time into shorter, more manageable segments.
4. Make sure to set up your BAGs (Big Audacious Goals). If you have nothing substantial to word toward, there is little motivation to work hard to achieve something.
5. Get rid of all of those distractions. Plan 1-2 times during the day that you will check your email and social media. Put your phone on DND (Do Not Disturb). When my elderly parents had medical issues, I set my phone to DND EXCEPT for phone calls from their caregivers that might have been emergencies. Everyone else could wait. That’s why voice mail was invented!

Getting yourself into “Deep Work” really isn’t complicated, but it is necessary for your success. It takes focus, intention, and discipline to give up doing the easy stuff and really work on the harder stuff.?

Deep work is a learned skill, and like any other skill, it takes daily practice to fully develop. Think of anyone you know or know of who has accomplished anything and then realize the very hard, very focused work they had to do to achieve their goals. You will have to do the same, and so will I!

Resources

Are you an independent writer or creative or solo professional looking for an experienced business coach to help you achieve your goals? Check out Pam’s Power Hours one-on-one coaching programs, and then schedule a free, 30-minute discovery call to see how I can help you.?

I have been successfully working with people like you since 2008, and I’m sure I can help you find solutions to your business challenges!