Focus
By Jaco Grobbelaar on Sun, Jan 01, 2012 @ 05:02 PM
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="250" caption="Turn it off during Focus hours"]
[/caption]
From Andy Sernovitz’s “Damn, I Wish I’d Thought of That” Blog
December 17, 2011
As usual, Sam Parker has some great advice for us on how to focus. Here’s his plan:
Focus hours: Twice each work day, I will hold focus hours. From 9 am – 11 am and from 2 pm – 4 pm, I will become unavailable to anything but true emergencies. My phones will be off to anything inbound (no calls, no texts… airport mode on my cell). It’s only two 2-hour blocks of time where I’m unavailable to others. When I think I can’t do it and that people need to reach me because I’m so very important, I’ll remember that I’m not as important as I think I am.
Email: I will turn off email alerts and check it only twice a day (11:30 and 4:30). When I think that’s impossible because people need to reach me because I’m so very important, I’ll remember that I’m not as important as I think I am. (See below for letting people know how to get to you.)
Instant messaging: I will not do it. This would be like allowing someone to jump up on my desk anytime they want and interrupt my workflow (and I certainly don’t want to do that to anyone else). After all, I’m a grown-up.
Web: I will not use the web personally during my money hours (mine are between 8 am and 6 pm each work day with a break for lunch). When this gets tough because of my addiction to distraction, I’ll remind myself again that I’m a grown-up.
Phone: I will not give my attention to my iPhone when people I know are around me. If it vibrates (a ringtone? please) when I’m in a face-to-face conversation I will do my best to ignore it and give it attention when I’m alone. Fortunately, when I’m in an airport, I generally don’t know a lot of people so I can dig into my phone all I want there (although I might miss out on some of those serendipitous moments I’ve had in the past where I’ve met some very interesting people and learned new things… hmmmm).
Read the original, full post here.

From Andy Sernovitz’s “Damn, I Wish I’d Thought of That” Blog
December 17, 2011
As usual, Sam Parker has some great advice for us on how to focus. Here’s his plan:
Focus hours: Twice each work day, I will hold focus hours. From 9 am – 11 am and from 2 pm – 4 pm, I will become unavailable to anything but true emergencies. My phones will be off to anything inbound (no calls, no texts… airport mode on my cell). It’s only two 2-hour blocks of time where I’m unavailable to others. When I think I can’t do it and that people need to reach me because I’m so very important, I’ll remember that I’m not as important as I think I am.
Email: I will turn off email alerts and check it only twice a day (11:30 and 4:30). When I think that’s impossible because people need to reach me because I’m so very important, I’ll remember that I’m not as important as I think I am. (See below for letting people know how to get to you.)
Instant messaging: I will not do it. This would be like allowing someone to jump up on my desk anytime they want and interrupt my workflow (and I certainly don’t want to do that to anyone else). After all, I’m a grown-up.
Web: I will not use the web personally during my money hours (mine are between 8 am and 6 pm each work day with a break for lunch). When this gets tough because of my addiction to distraction, I’ll remind myself again that I’m a grown-up.
Phone: I will not give my attention to my iPhone when people I know are around me. If it vibrates (a ringtone? please) when I’m in a face-to-face conversation I will do my best to ignore it and give it attention when I’m alone. Fortunately, when I’m in an airport, I generally don’t know a lot of people so I can dig into my phone all I want there (although I might miss out on some of those serendipitous moments I’ve had in the past where I’ve met some very interesting people and learned new things… hmmmm).
Read the original, full post here.
http://gaspedal.com
Share our stuff
Forward it, quote it, blog about it – whatever makes you happy! But please don't change it and do give us credit.
© Copyright 2011 GasPedal. GasPedal is a registered trademark.
Related articles
- What a productive post... (tdstidbits.wordpress.com)
Share this
You May Also Like
These Related Stories
What is the Difference Between Brand and Branding?

What is the Difference Between Brand and Branding?
Tue, May 24, 2011 @ 08:41 PM
3
min read
QR CodesA Paper-based Hyperlink

QR CodesA Paper-based Hyperlink
Mon, Jul 04, 2011 @ 08:28 PM
2
min read
An Exciting Adventure in Branding for Beginners

An Exciting Adventure in Branding for Beginners
Thu, May 26, 2011 @ 11:29 PM
2
min read
No Comments Yet
Let us know what you think