It’s an old principle of success: bundled energy has more power. Yet in recent years, society and business have become increasingly distracted. At some point, the attempt to do everything at once was called multitasking. Ineffective and long outdated.
Today I’m sharing 7 ultimate focus tips with you.
Creativity vs Productivity
Do you know this from your childhood: if your attention was not where parents or your teachers wanted you to be at the moment, you were scolded: “Where are you with your thoughts? Now concentrate.” Especially when something was off. Kids hate being pulled out of their thoughts, creative processes, or play. But creativity is a very different mental state than productivity.
In any case, parents and teachers weren’t entirely wrong about one thing: distraction and lack of concentration lead to wrong answers and mishaps in many cases.
Don’t you sometimes get annoyed with yourself when you make a mistake due to carelessness? When you come to the wrong conclusion because you overlooked details in the task? When you make the wrong decision because you were too quick and didn’t consider all the risks?
Hurray for singletasking
When you try to complete multiple tasks at once, you scatter your energy instead of focusing it. At first glance, it may seem like you’re getting more done at once. But is that really the case? Do you think multitasking produces the same results as singletasking?
Complex tasks require your full attention. By taking the focus away and directing your senses elsewhere, you decrease the attention and at the same time decrease the quality of the result. If you use your hands to clean up your desk while you’re on the phone with your boss or supervisor, you’re guaranteed to lose information. You’ll either wonder afterwards what you put where, or you’ll no longer be sure if you have a 1:00 or 2:00 appointment.
Multitasking is a desperate attempt to make a virtue out of a necessity. Too many communication channels and task areas want to be served at the same time. The idea of occupying “free” sensory channels with other tasks in parallel in order to save time has quickly proven to be nonsense. Not only are the results worse when multitasking, but the supposed time savings are also an illusion.
7 ultimate focus tips
Are you one of those managers and executives who are easily interrupted and distracted by every incoming email, text message and other request? If so, you should ask yourself what your bottom line is at the end of the day. Getting a lot done doesn’t mean getting a lot done. If you want to look back on a successful workday at the end of the day, take these seven focus tips to heart:
- Ensure quiet. Banish all potential sources of interference while you’re working on an important task. Be completely focused on that one thing.
- Reduce tasks to the essentials. Don’t get bogged down in frills. Carefully accomplish what is valued as a result. Ask yourself when you are undecided: “Does this task get me closer to the outcome?” Example: If you are preparing a status update, focus on the facts and don’t waste unnecessary time on layout.
- Bundle tasks. Reserve time slots for similar tasks, especially if there are complicated log-in procedures or paths involved.
- Set reasonable intermediate goals. No one is highly focused for hours. Take a break when you notice your mind wandering.
- Follow your desire. Focusing doesn’t work if you don’t feel like doing a task at the moment. It is especially important to be in the right mood for difficult tasks.
- Avoid time pressure. Nothing is more distracting than feeling like the clock is ticking.
- Bonus: Check off tasks to be done. That’s where you see what you’ve done and what you’ve done. Isn’t that pure satisfaction for a relaxed end of the day?
Conclusion: You can’t dance on several weddings at the same time. Concentration concentrates energy, leads to better results and thus to more success in the long term.