Whether your job is fully remote, you’re in the office, or you’re beginning to phase back into going into the office, there are endless distractions that keep you from focusing fully on your work.
We all face distractions every day that lower our productivity and increase our stress. Adopting new habits can help you control these distractions. Make it clear to people when you don't want to be disturbed, remove yourself from distracting environments to find somewhere quiet to work where you can focus, and keep your to-do lists clear and manageable.
Being able to limit these distractions can help you minimize the amount of context switching you’re doing on a daily basis.
Context Switching
Context Switching is breaking your focus on the task at hand to think about something else such as reading an email or slack notification or responding to a text. Context Switching occurs when you abandon your current task and move on to another task without completing the first.
Negative Effects of Context Switching
Context switching steals up to 80% of your time.
Most workers spend an average of 1 minute and 15 seconds on a task before some kind of interruption.
Multitaskers take 50% longer to finish a given task.
Context Switching damages your brain
When we repeatedly tackle multiple things at once, information is processed in the wrong parts of the brain, messing up our thinking patterns permanently.
One study found that performing multiple cognitive tasks simultaneously can lead to declines in IQ scores of up to 15 points.
Another study found that the brains of heavy multitaskers had “smaller gray matter density in the anterior cingulate cortex” which explains their reduced cognitive control performance.
Heavy multitasking has been proven to weaken your memory.
Context Switching lowers the quality of your work
Focusing on one task at a time = 100% of your productive time available
Task switching between two tasks at a time = 40% of your productive time for each and 20% lost to context switching ₁
Task switching between three tasks at a time = 20% of your productive time for each and 40% lost to context switching
Minimize Interruptions and Avoid Constant Context Switching
Time Block Your Day
Time blocking is the practice of planning out every moment of your day in advance and dedicating specific time “blocks” for certain tasks and responsibilities.
Start with your high-level priorities
Add blocks for reactive tasks each day - responding to email, Slack, etc.
Place buffers in between tasks - If you assume you can switch gears on the spot, you’re going to end up frustrated and behind schedule.
Schedule your breaks, not just lunch
Overestimate how long things will take (at least to start) - don’t be over-optimistic with your day until you have a solid understanding of what you can get done in a given period of time
Tell people what you’re doing - make sure the people around you understand what you’re working on, when you’re available, and set realistic expectations on communication and collaboration.
Revise as needed - try to be as realistic as possible when you set your schedule but be prepared to move things around or throw it out for a day if a priority task needs your attention
Build a Habit of single tasking during your day
Focusing on one task at a time can make you up to 80% more productive than splitting your attention across multiple tasks
Turn off Notifications on email, slack, iCloud messages, etc.
Define in your time block when you will check email, slack, etc.
Take Breaks
Use breathing exercises to combat stress. The anxiety of too many tasks makes it easier to context switch. Instead, take a few minutes to try a simple breathing exercise that will calm you down:
Sit somewhere comfortable with your back straight
Close your eyes and begin breathing through your nose
Inhale for a count of two
Hold your breath for a count of one
Exhale gently through your mouth for a count of four
Finish by holding your breath for one second and then repeat
Stretch, workout, or go for a quick walk. Even small moments of exercise during the day can help you stay focused for longer. If you can take a break outside, fresh air has been found to increase focus and balance.
Watch a funny video or something else relaxing. Breaks don’t have to be ‘productive’. Doing something you enjoy is a great way to quickly break out of the cycle of work and recharge your focus.
Disconnect from "Work Mode"
Record your progress. Start by acknowledging what you accomplished, tasks completed, time spent on Focus Work.
Organize any uncompleted tasks. Put everything in a place so it won’t pull at your attention, this could mean adding to your to-do list, updating your calendar, or setting reminders.
Glance at the week ahead. Take a second to make sure there’s nothing big on the horizon you’re forgetting. The goal is to convince yourself that you don’t need to ‘check in’ later when you’re trying to relax.
Acknowledge that the day is over. Do something to signal that you’re finished for the day. This could be closing your laptop and putting it away or even saying the words “Workday complete”.
You’re never going to be able to remove all the distractions in your daily life, but you can certainly make great progress against context switching and minimizing distractions. Start with building one or two habits into your daily life and grow upon that.
₁ Context switching: Why jumping between tasks is killing your productivity
MacKay