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Are You Indistractable?
Takeaways and successful strategies I have implemented from a valuable ‘personal growth’ book
“Most people don’t want to acknowledge the uncomfortable truth that distraction is always an unhealthy escape from reality.” Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life by Nir Eyal
Distraction is ever-present in today’s society. Open design office spaces, apps with push notifications, email, text, group chats, social media, and Netflix all vie for our attention. How do we manage distractions? How do we become Indistractable?
The book Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life provides research-backed strategies and stories to help anyone overcome distractions. Some fixes require complete overhauls of a work environment and mindset while others are minor adjustments to a smartphone or desktop.
I have started implementing many of the recommendations and have found improvements in my productivity, reductions in my work-related anxiety, and greater overall peace of mind.
The most helpful strategies for me have been time-blocking, turning off every notification aside from text, call, and calendar appointments, letting my wife know when I am indistractable (doing deep work), scheduling meetings/calls in the afternoons, and keeping my morning open for deep work.
I highly recommend this book to everyone. It even has a valuable section about helping children manage device usage.
I give the book an 8/10.
“Dissatisfaction and discomfort dominate our brain’s default state, but we can use them to motivate us instead of defeat us.”
