Destroy distractions: Biohacking tips for greater focus
Prime yourself to gain focus and productivity
You’re walking to your desk, coffee cup in hand, ready to get zoned in and focused on coding for the next hour or two.
Then it hits you, or beeps at you.
Distraction. What was supposed to be a productive coding session has turned into thirty minutes of answering messages, reading articles, researching things that may (or may not) be pertinent to the project at hand. Anxiety rises, because the work still needs to get done, but your time is shorter than it was before.
You might be kicking yourself: where did my focus and productivity go?
We’ve all been there. We have our sluggish days where it feels like our will power is dragging us through the day. It would be great to have a way to take back control, get in the flow and stay productive for longer periods of time.
Step one is to get primed, to signal to the brain: It’s time to create the space to work. Step two is to control your environment in such a way that it limits or removes completely those deadly distractions.
Step One: Get Primed
Why create a priming ritual?
For more on the science behind rituals and why they are so effective to improving performance, click here.
Small actions give us a sense of control over our environment. This sense of control can put us in a positive mood. Routines and rituals are not just for mornings. We can apply these principles to any moment we want to get in the right state of mind for work. It signals to the brain that one set of tasks is ending and another one is beginning.
There are three common elements in designing routine for starting your day
1) Physical movement
One of the quickest ways to get clear your mind and be ready for productive action is to begin with moving your body. Physical exercise increases blood-flow, releases those “feel good” endorphins, and stimulates neurons in the brain. This allows us to have more energy, feel less stressed and become focused on our work.
This doesn’t have to mean every time you sit down to code you need to spend an hour at the gym. A 10 minute walk, some jumping jacks or dancing to your favorite song are all ways to move the body, shock the cardio vascular system and awaken energy.
2) Self Talk
Don’t worry. You won’t look crazy because you are talking to yourself. Many successful people do this, and the positive effects of self talk have been well researched (we are loving the book “Chatter” by Ethan Kross for more on this topic).
Self talk is a way to motivate yourself toward action. By saying key phrases to yourself, you will prime your mind and regulate your emotions for more productive work.
Some of those phrases include:
I am confident and proud of myself
I have many skills and abilities
I am creative and talented
I am smart and able to come up with great ideas
I am able to take on any challenge
I am optimistic and believe in myself
I am not afraid to fail or do mistakes
I am able to shrug off criticism easily
I am resilient and refuse to give up
I can do anything I set my mind to
3) Mindfulness Practice
A good mindfulness practice reduces stress, improves concentration, and enhances self-regulation in our mind. It is worth taking one or two minutes to pause and be mindful of where you are and recenter yourself.
Now that we’ve covered the more common priming activities, let’s take a look at 3 uncommon practices we collected from our very own senior developers here at Clevertech, that you may not have tried before.
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1) Breath Control
Adding a breath control sequence to your pre-work routine is a great way to reset your thoughts and emotions, release tension and prepare for peak performance. Here’s one way to do it:
Hold your arms up, hands in front of your shoulders facing away from you.
Rapidly reach your arms to the sky, inhale
Rapidly bring your arms back down to the starting position, exhale
Repeat this for 10 seconds
At the end of tech seconds, pause and take notice of what is happening in your body and around you.
Repeat this sequence for 3 sets.
2) Standing from the start
A simple way to start your work session in a productive way is to avoid sitting down. If you have a standing desk or a counter top available, start by standing up and working. This will keep your blood flowing and energy moving through your whole body.
3) Bathroom time
If you’re the type of person that has a regular porcelain meeting time, you can use this to prime yourself for productivity. Rather than scrolling social media feeds, use this time to organize your thoughts. Take it a step further by visualizing your work session ahead of time. See yourself overcoming challenges and working well with colleagues.
Most of what sets exceptional developers apart from mediocre ones, are the small - seemingly insignificant actions, done consistently over time.
Step Two: Control Your Environment
Resist checking your email before you have checked your todo list.
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For more email management tips, check out this twitter thread from our CEOTurn off notifications. Use your phone’s work mode. Limit who can reach you and at what times.
Ask yourself “What is the most important thing for me to be doing right now?” This simple question, when asked a few times throughout the day, will be like a gentle reminder to your brain to come back to your priorities.
Keep a note for “later” tasks. When a task or idea enters your brain, throw it into your “later” note. This way your brain will rest knowing the thought has been captured, without derailing and feeling compelled to take action on something that isn’t a priority.
Step Three: Spend your renewed focus to get the right sh*t done at the right time
Creating triggers for your brain to shift into focused work time and guarding that time by eliminating distractions will allow you to be focused, productive and go from reactive actions to thoughtful choice.
What kind of actions set you up for a productive work session?
Do you take 15 minute breaks every 45 minutes?
(learn more about the Pomodoro method here)Set a timer and focus until it rings?
Joined a productivity pod, where everyone works independently on their own projects over zoom - just to have someone “with” them.
What ever works - WORKS and it’s worth exploring and crafting your process to get the most out of your work time and spend the rest of your day on the people and things that are most important to you.