[MUSIC] Many years ago I traveled to a remote area in a rainforest where I stayed with a local family. One day the daughter asked, if I'd like to ride an elephant? Sure, why not? So, her dad drops us off in what looks like the middle of nowhere drives off and we sit on the ground and we wait, and we wait, and we wait. I'm trying to adapt to the local culture in which like many around the world, time is elastic, so I don't say anything. But I am from the Northeast of the United States where time may as well be a fixed object. We say a stitch in time saves nine and are metaphors for time are visceral. We bide our time. We waste time. We even kill time. So, try as I might I couldn't help, but ask her, what are we waiting for? For the elephant to arrive, she replies. What time does the elephant arrive, I ask. She turns to me with a quizzical look on her face, like that is the craziest question she has ever heard. And she says, when it arrives. Eventually an elephant lumbers up, tosses dirt over its back a few times, lumbers over to us and lowers its head for my host to give it a pat. We climb up on its back and we ride through the rainforest toward home. That elephant had a lot more influence over what we were doing than we did. In what ways are all of us ceding control over our time, attention, and energy? Some distractions and interruptions are outside of our control, but we have more influence over some of them than we realize. And by controlling the controllable distracters, we can at least reduce the chaos of those outside of our control and better apply our energy. In this video, I'm going to explain the state we want to get to when we're working on our most important tasks and provide some examples of distracters and interrupters. It's going to feel like we're slogging uphill here, but do not worry, there are solutions on the other side that I will share in the next video. The ideal state to be in when working on highly challenging cognitive tasks is what the Csikszentmihalyi calls flow. You may have referred to this state of flow as being, quote in the zone. Nothing else exists when you're in the zone, you have no sense of time. You begin in the morning and suddenly it's dark outside. How did that happen? The work itself is intrinsically rewarding. You don't need a pat on the back. You don't need a raise to feel good about the work you did when you're in a state of flow. Even if the work is challenging, the skills and knowledge needed to accomplish it come to you seemingly, effortlessly and nothing and no one can distract you. You are totally focused and in control of your own time and space. You cannot get into a flow state when you're distracted or interrupted. Some interruptions are obvious, but might be difficult or even impossible to prevent. A fire alarm goes off. Your department is being reorganized and your work requirements changed seemingly overnight. Your biggest customer goes bankrupt and you need to get new sales right now and change all the materials you put out there that brag about that big customer. The boss orders you to do something or peers ask for help with something, while you're trying to get something else done. People stop by your workspace uninvited and send urgent messages. There are other distractions that are less obvious, so we don't even try to control them. Making these hidden distractions visible will enable us to manage them or prevent them, freeing up our attention to deal with those that are outside of our control. Hidden distractions include our own random thoughts that pop up throughout the day. What should I make for dinner? Is it my turn to pick up the kids today? Do I need to call my client? Did my employee finish that task, et cetera? Notifications, the pinging, and the messages that appear on our screen. Electronic clutter, many of us store dozens of files on our computer desktop. Have dozens of windows open on our browser. And leave thousands of emails, we already have read in our inbox. And physical clutter, when you look at your desk, or your car, or your truck, your kitchen counter, do you see clutter? Most of us do not believe that these random thoughts, and electronic, and physical clutter create distractions. Each of them is minor on their own. So, why prevent them? Moreover, we like these distractions. David Rock and his book, Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long says, we prefer the distraction over the more difficult challenge of focusing. According to cognitive science research, the part of the brain needed to solve complex challenges, the prefrontal cortex, is limited resource. The prefrontal cortex is where the brain brings forward past learning that it keeps stored in long-term memory. Our experiences, our memories, the things that make up our wisdom, and applies that learning towards solving complex challenges. The hidden distractions take up space in our prefrontal cortex, making that area of our brain less efficient at recalling and using stored memories. As each little pop up, or sticky note, or old email comes into view, it robs a little piece of our mind share. Fills a little bit of that prefrontal cortex with irrelevant information until in aggregate there's less space for our long-term memories in creative thinking and problem solving skills. When we're trying to get into and hold on to that flow state, these distracters make us less productive than we have the capability to be. What will help us deal with all these distractions and interruptions? In the next few videos we're going to unpack ways to respond. First to other people who interrupt us, in ways that enhance rather than harm our reputation, and to manage our electronic communications more efficiently.
