![\"Worried](\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Screen-Shot-2019-02-19-at-12.59.33-PM.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Editor’s note: This is a guest article from John Zeratsky<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n You\u2019ve got a new email from your boss, plus a dozen old ones that still require a response . . . Your friend posted photos from her visit to a coffee plantation in Costa Rica . . . What\u2019s the stock market doing today? Everyone is saying a bear market is coming, but you can\u2019t really predict those things . . . There\u2019s a new iPhone out, and you heard you can unlock it with your mind . . . You just got a notification: The deputy secretary of some government agency is resigning . . . You have time for a few minutes of Fortnite, don\u2019t you? Today you have a lot of meetings. What will you do about dinner? You should keep moving, be productive, and do the right thing . . . You read that the most successful people aren\u2019t on Facebook and have something called grit. That sounds good. You need grit.<\/em><\/p>\n We<\/span> live in a distracting world, and it\u2019s not getting any better. New information crashes toward us at every moment. Technology companies work tirelessly to create products that bring convenience and delight to our days. The incentive structure hasn\u2019t changed: usage creates data, data sells ads, ubiquity creates demand, demand sells devices. Sure, Google has Digital Wellbeing<\/a> and Apple has Screen Time<\/a>, and both are good things. But the bottom line is that everyone involved \u2014 from the hardware makers to the OS designers to the app creators \u2014 benefit when we use these technologies more, not less.<\/p>\n It\u2019s natural to think we need more discipline, willpower, energy, stamina, focus, or grit to resist these distractions. More something, for sure.<\/p>\n But for most people, I don\u2019t think willpower is the right approach<\/strong>. New psychology research is showing that old ideas about willpower and self-control weren\u2019t quite right<\/a>. It\u2019s possible that we can\u2019t build willpower and that self-control isn’t so effective, after all. What often looks like strength of resolve is really the result of an environment<\/a> or mindset<\/a> that makes the right decisions<\/em> the easy decisions<\/em>. <\/p>\n But if self-control is a function of circumstances, how can you change those circumstances? If willpower is a myth, how can you create an environment for good decisions that don\u2019t require willpower? It starts with defaults.<\/p>\n Every day, dozens of defaults\u200a \u2014 \u200afrom preinstalled apps, to expectations of instant response, to smartphone notifications, to cultural agreements on what\u2019s considered \u201cnormal\u201d \u200a\u2014 \u200ashape how we spend our time. Our willing acceptance of distracting apps and our culture of constant busyness show just how normal these things have become. Defaults seem inevitable after the fact, but they weren\u2019t assembled according to a grand plan. Modern life is not a utopia designed by some genius\u200a \u2014 \u200ait\u2019s just a collection of defaults that have stuck over the years.<\/p>\n So if you constantly feel busy and distracted, it\u2019s not your fault. But there is<\/em> something you can do about it: You can change the defaults of distraction and busyness by reconfiguring your technology. <\/strong><\/p>\n Let\u2019s get real: If you want to reclaim control of your time, it\u2019s your responsibility. No digital wellbeing feature or anti-technology manifesto is going to undo these defaults. And nobody cares more about your time than you do. Don\u2019t get me wrong: I\u2019m glad that Google, Apple, and Facebook are designing tools to help us form healthier relationships with their products. I\u2019m happy that writers like Tristan Harris<\/a> and Adam Alter<\/a> are pulling back the curtains on the tech industry and pushing these companies to do better. <\/p>\n But you can\u2019t wait for tech companies to give you back your time. It\u2019s on you.<\/p>\n Since you\u2019re reading this article, you probably feel like you should get better about distraction and focus. You probably recognize the sensation that rises after a mindless Instagram session or a where-did-the-day-go evening reflection. Maybe it feels like regret. Maybe it feels like fire. But if you feel it, harness that energy. Don\u2019t wait. Make the changes now.<\/strong> <\/p>\n What I\u2019m about to suggest is simple but not easy. It requires a burst of effort, but once you reconfigure your devices and apps, you don\u2019t have to constantly resist the distractions. You won\u2019t feel that nagging pull to do a quick Twitter check, because you can\u2019t<\/em>. You won\u2019t wonder whether you have any new emails, because you can\u2019t find out<\/em>. The key is creating barriers to distraction.<\/p>\n Here are three things you can try now \u2014 three tactics that take willpower and self-control out of the equation:<\/p>\n This is the simplest, most effective way to reclaim time and attention from your smartphone. In contrast to hacks like selectively disabling notifications, rearranging your homescreen, customizing sounds and vibrations, or putting your phone into \u201cAirplane\u201d or \u201cDo Not Disturb\u201d mode, removing apps gets to the core of the problem. It cuts off distraction where it starts. And it makes the hacks obsolete: You won\u2019t have to worry about notifications or airplane mode or hiding your distracting apps if they\u2019re not installed in the first place.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n If removing apps is so effective and so simple, why don\u2019t more people do it? Maybe we fear the anticipated pain of making hard choices, so we look for shortcuts that feel productive (like an elaborate form of procrastination). Maybe we worry about removing a certain app because we use it for work, or because we\u2019ll fall out of touch with friends, or because everyone else is using it. But we forget that defaults feel more permanent than they really are; that the app store is still just one tap away and friction-free as ever; and that we can still use Twitter and check email and read the news, but we can do it on our terms<\/strong>. <\/p>\n Besides, I\u2019m not proposing monastic vows of tech abstinence \u2014 just an experiment with a distraction-free phone.<\/p>\n After removing these apps, you might find that your feelings of FOMO are replaced with new feelings of calm and control over your time. You might realize that seeing your friends\u2019 photos on Facebook is not the same as keeping in touch with them. And you might discover that being less<\/em> responsive actually makes you a more<\/em> valuable colleague, because you can spend more time on the work that matters to your team.<\/p>\n Removing Infinity Pool apps (those that suck you in with their capacity for endless surfing\/scrolling\/refreshing) from your smartphone is a big step toward reclaiming your time and attention. But you might find that the empty address bar of your computer\u2019s web browser is just as hard to resist. It\u2019s right there every time you wake your computer: a magical portal to the infinite possibilities of the Internet.<\/p>\n How can we make time for what matters when the alternative is infinite entertainment and education? Once again, the key is creating barriers to distraction; but on the computer, it\u2019s not quite as easy as deleting a few apps. <\/p>\n Here\u2019s what works for me:<\/p>\n These simple tweaks create speed bumps on the road to mindlessly checking one of these Infinity Pools<\/strong>. Let\u2019s say I semi-unconsciously \u201cdecide\u201d to check Twitter. (This happens multiple times a day.) Because I no longer have a link in my bookmark bar, I have to type in twitter.com. But when I hit return and the login screen appears instead of the feed, I\u2019m reminded to pause and consider what I\u2019m doing: Am I checking Twitter on purpose, or by default? Do I have something to do \u2014 like see if anyone posted a question about my book<\/a> \u2014 or am I just looking for a break?<\/p>\n The answers to these questions are not always clear, and goodness knows I don\u2019t always make the right decisions. (\u201cRight\u201d being the decisions I know I want myself to make. I\u2019m not talking about some universal judgment of what\u2019s right and wrong here.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n When I\u2019m finished using one of these sites, I log out again, resetting the barriers to distraction. I\u2019ll admit: That final log-out does require a small amount of ongoing discipline. But this habit is easier to maintain than most, because I can harness the feelings of guilt and annoyance that typically accompany the end of a session with one of these apps. It goes something like this: Hmm, do I really want to look at Twitter? Yeah, okay, there\u2019s something I need to do. . . 30 minutes later . . . Ugh, I spent half an hour on Twitter! I gotta do something else. I should log out so this doesn\u2019t happen again. Click!<\/em><\/p>\n The friction introduced by having to stop, consider, grab the password, copy, paste, and sign in does me good. It forces me to make a decision about how I\u2019m spending my time, instead of mindlessly reacting to defaults.<\/p>\n This defensive perspective \u200a\u2014 \u200acreating barriers and habits to defeat distraction \u2014 is essential for reclaiming time and attention, but an emphasis on defense can feel like drudgery. It\u2019s like eating healthy or saving money: both are necessary but can feel like chores (or worse, like deprivation) unless balanced by an awareness of why<\/em> we\u2019re adopting those behaviors. <\/p>\n Similarly, when it comes to how we spend our time, we need more than defense \u2014 we need to think proactively about what we\u2019re making time for<\/em>. <\/p>\n The best way I\u2019ve found to maintain a proactive mindset is with the daily practice of choosing a “Highlight”<\/strong> — a rewarding focal point and priority your day. Try asking yourself the question: When I look back on my day, what do I want the Highlight to be?<\/em> Maybe it\u2019s an accomplishment at work. Maybe it\u2019s a project you\u2019ve been meaning to do at home. Or maybe it\u2019s an activity that brings you joy \u2014 a long walk, a board game, or cooking a meal from scratch. <\/p>\n Thinking about what you\u2019re making time for can create the motivation to set new habits into motion. And when your habits fall apart and things don\u2019t go as planned, the daily presence of your Highlight becomes a beacon, reminding you of the decisions you made and the plans you set \u2014 and giving you a boost to get back on track. <\/p>\n A daily Highlight can also be the saving grace of an otherwise \u201cblah\u201d day. When you\u2019ve chosen a Highlight, and planned your day to make time for it, you can mark a \u201cwin\u201d even if the rest of the day kind of sucks. <\/p>\n That\u2019s one of the reasons I love to work on my Highlight first thing in the morning: When I make time for something important right after waking up, the rest of the day is gravy. A traffic jam, a delayed train, a meeting that runs late, an outdoor workout that\u2019s rained out \u2014 these things are a drag, for sure, but when I\u2019ve already made time for my Highlight, I can grab a slice of satisfaction from even the most unsatisfactory of days<\/strong>. <\/p>\n The power of a Highlight to rescue a day is critical to the attitude of self-forgiveness that I talked about at the beginning of this story. See, you\u2019ll never be perfectly free of distraction. Your days will never be perfectly planned. And while it\u2019s not your fault that you live in a world of endless busyness and distraction, you can<\/em> do something about it. You can<\/em> adjust the defaults of this world. You can<\/em> create an environment that supports and enables the kinds of decisions you want to make about your time.<\/strong> <\/p>\n If you\u2019re intentional about your decisions, yet forgiving when things don\u2019t go according to plan, you can change your life. You have to start sometime. Why not today?<\/p>\n Be sure to listen to our podcast with John:<\/strong><\/em> <\/p>\n
\nIf You Feel Busy and Distracted, It\u2019s Not Your Fault<\/h3>\n
\n\n![\"Cartoon](\"https:\/\/cdn-images-1.medium.com\/max\/1600\/1*uCBeAIeJW3NsQfFA8OumuQ.png\"\/)
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\nHow to Create Barriers to Distraction<\/span><\/h3>\n
1. Remove Distracting Apps (On Your Phone)<\/h3>\n
\n2. Log Out and Change Passwords (On Your Computer)<\/h3>\n
\n
\n![\"Scenery](\"https:\/\/cdn-images-1.medium.com\/max\/1600\/1*vfkOjdI7gnp98i9aUyjbQA.png\"\/)
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n3. Get Proactive With Your Time<\/h3>\n