Sustainable Ambition Forum - 3.28.23

 
 

I was up again at 7 am logging into my writing sprint. I had my coffee at hand. My Bose headphones were on. I was ready to focus!

After our quick group check-in, off I went to delve into my writing work for the day.

Or did I? For a while, I stayed focused. But at some point, I wasn’t sure what to write, and my mind wondered if anything from work needed my attention. I pulled myself back to the page. But my mind went off track again. And then, I was in my email. Ugh! So frustrating!

This is what Nir Eyal, author of Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life and my latest podcast guest, would describe as an internal trigger and the discomfort that I need to learn to sit with so I can get traction on my work and make use of my time in the way I intend. (Below I share the simple coaching tip he offered to do so. You can try it out, too!)

Nir shares how research shows that 90% of distraction is caused by internal triggers, not external ones like we’d think. “An internal trigger is an uncomfortable emotional state that we seek to escape, boredom, loneliness, fatigue, uncertainty, stress, anxiety. These are these uncomfortable sensations that lead to the overwhelming majority of distraction because distraction is nothing more than a desire to escape an uncomfortable feeling.” 

Part of the Sustainable Ambition pillar of Right Effort is about how we can best use our energy so that we can go after our ambitions sustainably. There is benefit in learning how to work smarter, not harder.

That’s why the topic of focus is important. Most of us know what it’s like to struggle to stay focused and get work done. At the same time, many of us are plagued by feeling too busy. It’s hard to find time to do all we want or need to do.

Speaking with Nir made me wonder—is our busyness problem partly a distraction problem? Is part of the problem that we aren’t able to be efficient with our time, because we’re constantly distracted and not accomplishing what we intend both during work and during times that should fill us back up, like spending time with family and friends?

What’s important to note is that Nir says the opposite of distraction is traction. “Traction by definition is any action that pulls you towards what you said you were going to do, things that you do with intent, things that move you closer to your values, and help you become the kind of person you want to become. Those are acts of traction. The opposite of traction—distraction—is any action that pulls you away from what you plan to do, further away from your goals, further away from your values, further away from becoming the kind of person you want to become.”

What’s key is to be intentional with how we use our time. Being clear on: What am I going to do? And when am I going to do it? And learning to sit with the discomfort that comes up (those internal triggers) so we can be present to what we intend to do in each moment.

As Nir admits, this is a practice. It’s not easy. Mastering our internal triggers takes having a plan to address them because they’ll pop up all the time. Another mantra from Nir, “The antidote to impulsiveness is forethought.”

Meaning, we need to have a plan, a practice to help us get traction.

Here’s a place to start (but Nir’s book is the bible!):

  • Before you start an activity for a period of time, be clear on the intention you have for that time.

  • Consider where you might run into a block or get triggered to be distracted.

  • Have a plan of action to deal with that distraction and come back to the intended work at hand. (See the tip below and Nir’s book for more.)

I hope you enjoy the conversation with Nir as much as I did. Here’s to getting traction on our work and making time for what matters.

Cheers!
Kathy Oneto
Founder of Sustainable Ambition

P.S. Nir’s book is chock full of insight. I highly recommend a read, and the podcast episode is below!


The Round-Up


“Beware the culture of busyness.” Nir Eyal said, “Distraction at work is a symptom of cultural dysfunction.” So, too, can be busyness. Companies often default to busyness patterns, and we can, too. I know I can and need to proactively break myself out of it. Here’s how you can apply this article’s tips to help yourself out of the busyness bind: 1) reward yourself based on personally defined metrics, not hours worked or number of items checked off a to-do list, 2) allow for and get comfortable with downtime and mind wandering, 3) create space for deep work, 4) take your breaks/vacation and don’t work, and 5) build slack into your days to create resiliency in your schedule.

Manage your energy budget. I love Yo-You Ma. I find him inspirational on multiple levels. So it wasn’t surprising to enjoy this conversation between him and Adam Grant and be inspired by how he talks about burnout (Avoid it at all costs! Avoid over-use!) and the wise counsel to manage our energy like a budget.

100 small, simple ways to make life better. I love this list! It’s worth a quick perusal to see if there are even just a few items worth putting into practice to make things a bit more joyful and sustainable for yourself.

The Sustainable Ambition Podcast - Episode 101

Join me for conversations with experts, authors, and friends on
what it means to live with Sustainable Ambition.

Nir Eyal is the author of Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life. Hear his thoughts on why we get distracted, why we should be shooting for traction not just focus, and why we should take responsibility and set intentions around how we use our time.

These are just a few of the topics we cover:

  • Why to-do lists backfire and what to do instead

  • What to do when it feels like you have no control of your calendar at work

  • Nir coaches me through two of my own trouble spots when it comes to distraction

This is a juicy episode, just like the book. Let’s hear how to get traction on our work and make time for what matters.

Listen on our website here and on a podcast player here


Get Comfortable with Discomfort


Nir talks about how getting traction on our work and avoiding distraction is about pain management.

He coached me in the podcast episode and referenced one of the top tips in his book to fight against internal triggers and discomfort: The 10-Minute Rule or Surf the Urge.

It’s simple and worth putting in your toolkit!

Here’s how it works: Instead of immediately giving in to the discomfort we often feel when we get down to work, don’t allow yourself to be distracted for 10-minutes and surf the urge. Set a timer. After 10-minutes, you then have a choice to make—stay with your work or do what you were pulled to do. What’s most important is to be intentional about your next step. Be in choice about how you want to use your time.

Bonus: I loved how in the episode Nir shared how he also tells himself when tasks feel hard: “This is what it feels like to get better at something.”

The Monthly Progress Practice: March


At the beginning of each year, we share our Monthly Progress Practice. Progress is made through small, consistent action. We offer a monthly practice of small actions or inquiries to inspire positive change this year. Practice makes progress.

Our guidance for March: Energize. Rest or adding space to one’s calendar isn’t always the answer. Add an energizer that you love instead. It will give you a boost of energy to bring to everything else you put your heart and mind to each day.


 

“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.”

Hans Hofmann