Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about attention span. It is not just me, I think many experts are talking about it in the context of children and their usage of digital devices.
It is true that the next generation’s attention span is far lesser than what ours was. However, I also realized that my attention span is far lesser than what it used to be.
It is easy to point fingers at the next generation’s attention span. But, let us look at our own. Some questions that I find difficult to answer in the affirmative.
Can I start a task and do it to completion without any external interference? A phone call or a door bell or a child’s questions?
Can I do a digital task without another app distracting me occasionally? A notification or a ping?
Can I sit still with my phone next to me without me seeking it out for notifications? I’m training for this, but I have to confess that it is an urge that I struggle to suppress.
These days, I also realize that our conversations never go deeper into a topic. Everyone hijacks a conversation along different directions exactly like clicking on the next interesting video link.
What are the conscious actions that one can take to solve it?
- Meditate 🧘
- Time-box tasks. Announce beforehand to family. Let the phone ring.
- Slow down.
That’s about all that I can think of without going extreme.
(Photo by LOGAN WEAVER | @LGNWVR on Unsplash)