Canceling Out the Distractions
My new favorite thing is noise canceling headphones. I've had a pair for years but lately I've been using them to write. Game changer!
I'm generally very focused once I get into a focusing zone. However, everything about my brain requires long stretches of start up/shut down. It takes me at least an hour to fully wake up in the morning (and that's with coffee) and when I go to sleep it's a several hour long process. The same goes for focusing. I can work for long stretches of time but calming down enough to actually get into the focusing zone can require some work.
So I took the advice of a friend and tried headphones with music. I made myself a playlist of classic music--no words! It took some getting used to. I'm a musician so my first instinct when I hear music is to focus on it. But I kept the volume turned down low and I made a point of having the music on only when I'm writing. If I turned away to look at my phone or check my email, I paused the music.
Basically, I Pavlovian dog trained myself.
It's been hugely successful for me though. The noise canceling headphones helped to cut down on the number of extraneous sounds I heard that could prove to be a distraction. While I'm not necessarily writing any more per day, I am using my time more efficiently. Once I sit down the music helps to put me in an "instant focus zone." I now spend less time putzing around online trying to get myself into the proper frame of mind.
Next step: increase word counts!
I'm generally very focused once I get into a focusing zone. However, everything about my brain requires long stretches of start up/shut down. It takes me at least an hour to fully wake up in the morning (and that's with coffee) and when I go to sleep it's a several hour long process. The same goes for focusing. I can work for long stretches of time but calming down enough to actually get into the focusing zone can require some work.
So I took the advice of a friend and tried headphones with music. I made myself a playlist of classic music--no words! It took some getting used to. I'm a musician so my first instinct when I hear music is to focus on it. But I kept the volume turned down low and I made a point of having the music on only when I'm writing. If I turned away to look at my phone or check my email, I paused the music.
Basically, I Pavlovian dog trained myself.
It's been hugely successful for me though. The noise canceling headphones helped to cut down on the number of extraneous sounds I heard that could prove to be a distraction. While I'm not necessarily writing any more per day, I am using my time more efficiently. Once I sit down the music helps to put me in an "instant focus zone." I now spend less time putzing around online trying to get myself into the proper frame of mind.
Next step: increase word counts!
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