Constantly Distracted? Maybe It's not You.

Apps and Habits Define your actions

Based on a true story that happened recently.

The Action

Have you heard of note-taking systems? Do you have one? I am a big fan of note-taking. I use a tool called Logseq.

This happened on a rainy evening as I was typing the “How to be a consistent writer?” chapter for my Technical Blogging book, unaware of the irony that would hit 2 seconds later.

The manuscript of the book is in Google Docs. I also had all my notes for the book in Logseq on another window. Since I had a few ideas to expand on, I started typing directly in Logseq instead of the doc, and that’s when it began.

The Distraction

After about 3 minutes of typing, I was on Twitter for no reason. I quickly noticed and recovered from that mini-distraction. I went back to writing, and 2 mins later, I was back on Twitter.

It got irritating when it went on like this for another 3 times. I stopped writing at that point and took a stroll.

I didn’t know why I was so distracted. I couldn't pinpoint what was going on exactly. There was no reason to even switch to the browser. But whenever I'm Logseq, I return to the browser like a programmed robot.

And then it hit me suddenly out of nowhere.

The Realization

I always use a Logseq in pair with the browser. As a note-taking tool, it always opens with the browser when I’m reading or watching a YouTube video. If I find anything interesting, I will note it in Logseq.

My behavior was programmed into the muscle memory that my brain was looking for some information whenever I was on Logseq. The moment it doesn’t find it, it opens twitter.

So before you curse yourself for getting distracted, take a deeper look.

• Is it your surrounding?

• Is it your desk?

• Is it the apps?

• Is it the work itself?

Your Turn💡

When was the last time you had trouble focusing? And Why?👇🏻

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