Hyperfocus

Self help book on increasing focus

• Book written by Chris Bailey

Why focus matters

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I left my phone at home so I could write distraction free, and so my mind could rest on the walk to the diner, and wander. As I'll disucss later, disconnecting is one of the most powerful ways to spark new and innovative ideas.

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..Chose this diner over favorite cafe because there's no wi-fi-- constant connectivity is one of the worst disruptions to our focus and productivity.

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I knew that my brain never functioned well when I was tring to multitask, but I felt compelled to do it anyway. Working with my email client open and my smartphone on my desk was simply more appealing than trying to concentrate on one or two simple things.

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Curiously, research shows that what lets us focus when reading isn't the complexity ofa paper or article- it's how interested we are in what we're reading.

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I also fount that we encounter more distraction roday than we have in the entire history of humanity.

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I went from viewing multitasking as a stimulating work hack to ragarding it as a tarap of continuous interruptions. While trying to do more task simulataneously, we prevent ourselves from fininshing any one task of significance. And I began to discover that by focussing deeply on just one important thing at a time- hyperfocusing- we become the most productive version of ourselves.

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On the surface, the results can seem a bit like magic, but magic stops being magic the moment you know how it's done.

How to better focus on this book

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1. Put your phone out of sight

   • When your mind is even slightly resisting a task, it will look for more novel things to focus on.

2. Mind your environment

   • Modifying your environment is one of the top ways to cultivate your focus.

3. Make a distractions list

   • Whenever I have to focus, I adopt the two tactis mentioned above- and I also bring a pen and a notepad with me. In the notepad I write every distraction that makes its way into my mind- things I need to follow up on, taks I can't forget, new ideas, and so on.

4. Question whether this book is worth consuming at all

   • Take time to weight the vaue of your routine consuption. A tactic I find helpful is to view the descriptions of books, TV shows, podcasts, and everything else as "pitches" for your time and attention. Ask youself: After consuming one of those products, will you be hapy with how you invested our time and attention?
   • Just as you are what you eat, you are what you pay attention to. Attention is finite and the most valuable ingredient you have to live a good life- so make usre everything you consume is worth of it.

5. Consume some Caffeine before reading

   • If it's not too late in the day- caffeine takes 8-14 hours to metabolize out of your system- conider reading along a cup cup of of coffee or tea.
   • Caffeine boosts your mental and physical performance in virutally every measurable way. Use this energy boosts wisely to work on an important task to read this book.

6. Grab a Pen or Highlighter

   • When I finish that first read, I go thorough the book a second time, rereading just the highlighted parts so I can really process the most valuable nuggets.

7. When you notice your focus wavering

   • For now, though when you do notice your focus fading, step back from this book for a few minutes to do something realively midnless. Whether it's washing the dishes, people watching, or cleaing the house, you'll effectively recharge your attention. Once your focus has been reset, return to the book with a fresh mind.

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