DEV Community

Discussion on: How do you stay focused in a distracted world?

Collapse
 
skibitsky profile image
Gleb Skibitsky

I always focus on one task at a time with notifications and distracting websites/apps blocked. I made this tool to automate this process. Also, I plan my day ahead and try to keep to the plan as much as I can, so I do most of the things that I planned. Still looking for better ways to focus and finding the best ratio between focus and leisure time.

My iPhone allows me only 15 minutes of social networks and I limit my information sources to a few group chats and developer communities. Adding additional friction (i.e. not having dev.to bookmark and putting the app on the third screen on iOS) helps to use media less :)

Personally I have tried a lot things, and they help, but it still feels like a never ending battle.

What works best for you? Would like to learn your tricks :)

Collapse
 
jmfayard profile image
Jean-Michel πŸ•΅πŸ»β€β™‚οΈ Fayard • Edited

What works best for you?
Would like to learn your tricks :)

I don't actually manage to avoid distractions.

But I got better at getting back on track.

I ask all the time: why is thing important?

When I feel overwhelmed, I write down a list of projects to avoid doing now so that I can focus on a realistic set of next tasks.

I make a BaseCamp or Trello board to have an overview of what I could do. Seeing it all at once helps me prioritize.

Doing meditation helps a lot. I use calm.com/

Walking outside is also great.

I avoid social media.

I wish I would avoid news, but I read too much of it.

On my smartphone I use a minimalist launcher

I write a blog post here to be inspired by what others are doing :)