It seems that much of what is suppose to help us only keeps us from what needs to get done. Constant distractions only pile up that as we fight off one there is only another one lurking at the door to whisk us away from the task at hand. And to make matters worse society and all of its gadgets and gizmos only encourage us to be more scattered and unproductive each and every day.
It’s time to take a stand (or seat) and cultivate new simple habits that will not only save you time but most likely save you money, as time is money.
Six tips for how to stay focused in a chaotic world:
- Get up and walk away-from the electronics that is. Every 15 to 30 minutes get up and literally walk away, just put the tablet down and slowly step back and no one will get hurt. Time flies when you are glued to your electronics, and it’s usually longer than you think. It seems like you don’t have time to step away, even for just a few minutes, but I promise you that mini break will save you eye strain, brain fog and an ache in your back.
- Get outside every day. Too busy? I call your B.S. and raise you a hug to a maple tree. The inhalation of fresh air not only will help reset your brain and restore the depleted oxygen you have most likely been living on for several hours cooped up in the office, house or car, but actually taking the time to commune with nature will help you reset what is important and calm you down.
- Stop texting. I do my fair share of convenient texting, especially when I just need to let someone know something short and sweet; but constant communication that requires us to well, not communicate has dramatic affects on our health and happiness. Pick up the phone, or better yet make a date to meet someone face to face and leave your phone in the car! Look your buddy in the eyes and make it a point to actually make physical contact with them (a hug, hand shake or some sort of interaction that triggers your brain to fire). The World Wide Web has left us socially deprived and heavily lacking true human communication skills allowing us to say and do things we would not otherwise do to someone face to face. So now’s the time to start using those baby blues and making some real connections.
- Limit the amount of down time (or relaxation time) that includes electronics, like: T.V., computers, internet, Facebook, your tablet, anything that is really just an allusion of relaxation, but rather mindless activity. For most of us this type of down time is really an escape from truly connecting with ourselves. Say you don’t have time for yoga, meditation, and your kids? Think again, you have way more time that you thought and those activities will have a more positive effect on your health and well-being than a handheld device.
- Learn to breathe. Breathing is an involuntary action in the body, meaning that we atomically do it without thinking about it. The problem with that understanding is that even though it happens automatically, most of us do not do it very well. The average person breathes with less than 18% of their lung capacity and most of us have little to no clue how to truly breathe using our entire lung capacity and what I like to call breathing 360° round. Breathing more deeply will help increase serotonin to the brain, increase endorphins and lower blood pressure, not to mention help curb anxiety and aid indigestion. So take a deep breath in and step away from all that is no longer important.
- Move more. We live in a society that just doesn’t move enough and that has left many of us tired, fatigued and unmotivated to well—move. Now I’m not talking exercise as much as I’m talking just good ole movement, like get our butts walking more, up and about, bending, stretching and reaching more; because all those little movements during the day add up to our bodies, minds and spirits feeling more able to stay focused on all the tasks at hand.
For many of us chaos is just the norm, stress and overwhelming amounts of pressure and has left us strung out and stressed out. Fighting the urge to constantly be connected and plugged in is the root cause for many of being distracted. Today is day one to begin to take back your life and your happiness.