Are you tired of hearing yourself say things like, “I just don’t have enough time,” or “It feels like I worked all day and got nothing done?”

These things can be signs that you are being distracted. In today’s digital world, it is common for distractions to keep us from getting at the things we want to accomplish. In fact, it is possible that we are being encouraged to accept getting distracted as part of normal daily life. Do you ever turn off your phone? Or do you leave it on just in case—just in case you get the message you have been waiting for?

Measuring Distraction 

After examining some of the research on distraction, I learned that the amount of time spent being distracted is measured in several interesting ways. The amount of time we spend in sustained activity is measured in two performance factors: accuracy and kindness.  Distractions can and do affect both of these measurements. Researchers are also interested in learning when we recapture focus and attention on a task after a distraction.

What is Distraction?

A distraction can be something like glancing over to check your phone to see what’s happening now on your Twitter feed or seeing if you have a reply from a friend. A distraction can be an interruption from your phone or a knock at your door. In short, a distraction takes your mind away from the task at hand.

Does Getting Distracted Matter to Your Productivity?

Are you engaged in tasks that demand intense thought? Is your speed at performing a task or how much time you spend on the task factor into your productivity? I didn’t want to believe what you were about to read. According to research at the University of California, getting yourself back on track with a task that requires your full attention after being interrupted takes just over 23 minutes. This finding suggests that even a few distractions can set you back a whole hour or more at the end of a day.

This study also concluded that distracted or interrupted people tend to work faster to meet benchmarks and deadlines, but working faster with interruptions may come with costs.  It found frequently interrupted people experience workload-related stressors, frustration, and pressure.

Before you disagree with the amount of time lost due to interruption and change of focus, another online article said it took about 25 minutes to get re-focused. It went on to say that our current attention span is about 11 minutes. How long can you stay focused on a task? How long does it take you to get back into the groove?

Is Our Attention Span Changing?

I next went to find out more about our attention span these days. I had read that note that even a goldfish had a longer attention span than a human. Really? Reports vary. One article said our attention span has dwindled to about five minutes from 12 minutes ten years ago. I encourage you to monitor your own situation. If you are a parent working from home, interruptions may be the order of your daytime hours, and you may choose to get your work done after the children are in bed.

What if We Classified Attention Span as Purpose?

What if you are bored? Does your level of interest play a part? The amount of time you focus on doing a jigsaw puzzle in a single sitting might have no relation to the amount of time you spend focusing on what is said at the weekly office meeting, reading an engaging book or answering your email. And sometimes, we divide our attention between two things, such as what’s happening in the kitchen and what is being reported on television. So some factors influence sustained attention, and there are situations where our focus shifts and alternates our attention between two activities.

Does it Matter if We Get Distracted?

What do we value most when it comes to paying attention or focusing on the task at hand? Would that be:

• sustained attention?
• the ability to be interrupted and get back to home base?
• the ability to shift attention with accuracy?
• the ability to make the best choice about where attention should be directed and ignore everything else?

What do you value being able to do?

Avoiding Distractions

If you are feeling frustrated about not getting your work done or that you can’t keep your mind on your work, here are three distractions that you should avoid:

• Avoid constantly checking your email. How would your work life be different if you only checked your messages once an hour or twice a day? Checking those pings on your smartphone and impatiently checking your inbox takes you away from your intended activity. And avoid your email immediately after you wake up each morning. Let your brain remain calm.
• Avoid performing Drive-By Reading (DBR). Skimming text is not DBR. Skimming is an activity you perform with your eyes to locate the thing you are looking for with a quick visual examination. I define DBR as fishing where you are looking for something that captures your attention. DBR can have you bouncing from topic to topic as you navigate down many Internet rabbit holes exploring URL after URL without going too deep. Mere seconds will do. Some call investigating rabbit holes surfing. It’s not okay to do when it replaces the time you could otherwise spend on your intended activity. Furthermore, going slow has a better chance of capturing and sustaining your attention with focus than speed.
• Avoid doing two things at once. Is it really possible to do two things at once? Probably not. You are likely moving back and forth from one activity to the other. Even listening and writing has your attention divided between the two activities so you move quickly from one to the other. You may feel better about your outcome if you choose one, finish it, and start the next.

Who might care if you can hold your attention on a thought or a task?  You might be saying, “Does it matter? I get stuff done, don’t I?” Persons who are unsupervised while working, for instance, in remote or hybrid positions of employment, may find themselves wanting to log their own activities and assess their own work behaviors to determine if distractions are occurring and, if so, at what frequency.

Distractions do cost. The more you continue to allow yourself to be distracted, the more likely it is that you will experience feelings of frustration for not getting done what you intended to get done. Managing distractions is a crucial aspect of choosing the things you spend your time on. You can’t buy back time spent, so make conscious choices.

Will you stick to your priority or choose to monitor the pings and dig rabbit holes? I invite you to challenge yourself to extend your attention span and limit distractions.

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Resources:

Keefe, Rose. “How to Get Back on Track When You Get Distracted.” Last updated 13 September 2022. Web. 20 March 2023

Mark, Gloria et al. “The Cost of Interrupted Work: More Speed and Stress.” Microsoft Word – chi1038-mark.doc. Web. 20 March 2023

Plumridge, Nicole. “Is the internet destroying our attention span?” 3 January 2020. Web, 20 March 2023