I was supposed to be writing. Instead, I find myself 30 minutes deep in a distraction hole, wondering about the best way to fix my home’s landscaping.

Now comes the shame spiral…

the promise I will never do it again…

the mindfulness meditation and methods I use to calm myself down...

 And now, the time I had available for that project is gone, spent reacting to distraction.

When we get distracted, many of us beat ourselves up. No one needs more guilt. Reacting to the distraction still pulls you further from what's important.  The time we spent reacting to the distraction gets in the way of the task, whether we soothe ourselves or criticize ourselves. This is the second mistake, turning one distraction into even more lost time.

We may have things we do to quiet the criticism. However, calming ourselves only helps if it allows us to return to the task. Instead, once you notice the distraction, use whatever time remains. Say, “Okay, that happened, and I’m going to take the next step forward.”   

The second mistake adds up. Let’s be honest: I’ve spent hours, weeks…years giving distractions even more of my time.  How is that possible? I signed up for business classes and productivity systems to become more effective and finally stop getting distracted. Guess what? I still did.

I want this to be very clear in my own mind. The distraction that just happened is over. We cannot change that it happened. What matters now is what I do next. The best action you can take now may be returning to what you intended to do

So you're going to get distracted. Don’t make the distraction bigger by reacting intensely to it. It happened. It’s probably going to happen again

We can learn to feel frustrated by getting distracted and still take a step forward. Even if you get distracted two minutes into an hour-long block and return at minute 58, you can use the time that remains. Maybe you write two sentences, add a few words, or finish one line of code. In each case, you have returned.  Returning—even briefly—is the point.

Drew Carr, PhD

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P.S.S. The cost of staying reactive compounds. If you’re ready to stop paying it, book a free consultation and let’s get to work. Click Here