Get Distracted and Focus on Mental Storytelling
If you find it difficult to focus on your tasks, a brief description of what you need to do can help you stay focused.
We all have days when your mind doesn’t want to focus on any work. When that happens, you’ll need to find a way to put the productivity train back on track. Charles Duhigg, author of Smarter, Faster, Better: The Secrets of Productivity in Life and Business , believes that telling yourself what you’re going to do as if it’s a story can help you focus again. Duhigg explains to Science of Us:
If you need to improve your concentration and avoid distractions, take the time to visualize in as much detail as possible of what you are about to do. It’s easier to understand what’s ahead when you have a well-thought-out scenario in your head.
This process is very similar to mental rehearsal for planning ahead , but on a much smaller scale. Let’s say, for example, you can’t focus on your busy work. Take a moment (close your eyes if you like) and then mentally describe each step of what you are about to do. Now that you get back to your work, you have a script to follow and it is much easier to stay focused because you know what to do every step of the way. You only need to do the movements.
To Do More, Become the Storyteller of Your Own Life | Science about us