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The Disorganized Mind
Distractibility
such a place to \'lork on a particular project. They say that the "buzz" helps to activate their brain to scree n out the background noise so they can focus.
This "vay, you feel as though you've acted on whatever it was, so it's out of your head and therefore out of yo ur mind. If you're someone who often complains that great ideas come to you in the middle of meetings or when you're concentrating on something else, you can capture tho se ideas by writing them down as they occur to you. This helps you gain more control over your creative ideas and your distracted mind , and it provides a way to follow up on you r many great ideas.
USE MUSIC TO STAY ON TRACK
\Vhen I need to put in several hours of writing, I have one CD that] play over and over again. 1 use this particular CD only to write to. I've trained myself to si t down and start to work as SOon as it begins playing. ]t took a while, but it works. Try it l
187
MAKE IT A PERSONAL POLICY NOT TO MAKE STOPS EN ROUTE BE AWARE OF THE PASSING OF TIME
·Wear a sports watch and set it to beep every hour on the hour to help you "hear the passing of tim e." When it beeps, stop and do a self-check. Ask yourself, "Am] doing what] am supposed to be doing?" CREATE SELF-ACCOUNTABILITY EVERY HOUR ON THE HOUR
To make sure you stay on course and focus on what you need to be doing-and to learn to be accountable to yourself- take a Post-it note or a blank piece of paper and write down the three tasks you will complete over the next hour. At the end of the hour, throwaway the piece of paper or Post-it note and write down your next three to-do items on a new sheet. These need to be concrete and doable, things like "CaJl Charlie" or "Water plants" or "Mail letter." Kno"ving that you have to complete the tasks within the designated time will keep you moving so that you don 't hyper focus on one activity to the exclusion of the others on your list. PARK IT!
·Whenever you get the urge to veer off course, park it. D es ignate a notebook or an electronic file for tho se extraneous thoughts that pop up Get them out of your head and onto a piece of paper, delegate them to another tim e and day, and keep going.
Many of my clients, already on the verge of being late for a meeting or appointment, will decide to make a quieT'? stop at a store or run a quieT'? errand on the way. History, of course, will tell you the conse quences of these actions: getting stressed, being even later, missing your appointment altogether, disappointing others, and beating yourself up for repeating the same mistake over and over again Post a sign on your dashboard that reads, "Don't Stop!" If you walk or use public transportation , stick a Post-it note on your wal let reminding yo u, "Go Directly to \Vork l" or, "Go Directly Hamel" And do what it says! AVOID THOSE TRAPSI
Don't fool yourself into thinking, "Oh, I can read one more e-mail before] leave for my appOintment," or, "] can do X, Y, and Z really quickly before I go." Don 't listen to that voice inside your head l It will only get you into trouble. "Just one more minute" doesn't give you more time; it only makes you late. if you know, for example, that e-mail distracts you , use a timer to signal you to turn off your computer an hour before your app ointment. BEWARE OF "SEE DO"
~Iost of my clients respond well to their immediate physical envi ronment, meaning they get caught in what they caU the "see do"