The Fight is on for your Attention

The best and brightest, now, and in the future, will have focus, an ability to tune out all distractions, own their attention and get done what needs to be done.

The choice is yours. Will you be hijacked by ‘something’ (your phone, television, tablet, email) letting it dictate your day.? Or will you hunker down, sticking to the things, the most important things, that need to be done? Don’t make your attention a commodity. Make it a precious treasure, not to be freely given away.

When I feel most fulfilled after a day’s work, I’ve made it a point to eliminate distractions. The truth is this: creating an atmosphere or environment that increases the odds I’ll get the most important work done today is much harder now than 2010, 2005 or 2000. The world is moving faster and with that pace comes more items designed to capture our attention.

Email? Social media? Close it down. Check it out a few times a day.

Phone? Turn it off. If you were expecting someone to text or email you, message them with this powerful, non-negotiable statement: “I must complete a few important projects today. I’ll be back online in a couple of hours and we can connect at that time.” The perception? This is a person who has made a concerted effort to getting things done, the things worth doing to advance their priorities.

Until next time,

Dan Naden