Nir Eyal’s Indistractable establishes the path of the perseverant: distraction mitigation. As for many millennials, myself included, the global response to COVID-19 ushered in the decentralized work environment and telecommute from the comfort of one’s own ergonomic home office setup. This new normal, however, introduced a unique set of challenges- notably, in particular, distraction via smartphone usage for activities unrelated to work.
Typically kept at arm's length during onsite work, smartphone usage has become increasingly prevalent in the home office - a far cry from the cubicles, in which physical monitoring/interaction cannot readily be evaded. What then is the solution to this new distraction? As Eyal prescribes: making time for traction.
A well-known example of making traction is Francesco Cirillo’s Pomodoro Technique Observers compartmentalize 25-minute work sessions interspersed with 5-minute breaks - the latter meant to serve as a full-reprieve from work and brief but enjoyable indulgence in distractions. Likewise, this modularity also allows for multiple (three to four) consecutive 25-minute sessions followed by an appropriately scaled break. Moreover, since implementing the Pomodoro Technique to make traction, I’ve personally seen an uptick in my home-workplace productivity, efficiency, and overall happiness. In fact, I’ve even recommended this technique to a few friends looking to boost their productivity, all of whom have expressed similar, favorable results.
Overall, as technology becomes increasingly user-friendly and future-proofed, our handling of it must likewise follow suit. So while smartphones will undoubtedly remain at arm’s length throughout the workday, so too should one's indulgence in them - unless, of course, one has rightfully earned a Pomodoro Technique break.
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