Addicted to Distraction

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Can I have your attention? I have lost mine.

Have you noticed that you’re too busy being distracted to focus on anything?

My family lives in an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) positive home. Distraction is a biological fixture in our lifestyle. Lately, I am beginning to believe that distraction is contagious and that I have come down with a bad case. Worse yet, perhaps my distraction habit has become a distraction addiction. Focusing on one thing now seems boring and unnatural. I think that being distracted has evolved into my normal state.

When I focus on how distracted I am, I don’t like it.

How about you? Can you focus solely on these words long enough to actually think about them in one sitting?

Surrounded by Distractions

As I sit comfortably semi-reclined in my living room, one of our two basset hounds is snoring loudly. The other hound has a hard-to-reach itch that requires sporadic scratching, which results in dog tag jingling. A small envelope icon in the corner of my screen tells me I have unopened mail. My phone is on the coffee table, lighting up with new messages. I have no fewer than 20 partly read and very interesting books on my end table next to my chair seeking my undivided attention. Next to the table is my overflowing magazine basket. I haven’t had breakfast yet, so my tummy engineers are making their first calls to my brain requesting more food soon. At any moment my bladder will announce on my inner intercom that my two mugs of coffee have been successfully processed and need to be emptied. I need a shower and shave in a few hours. There are at least four work projects that could use a couple of check marks on my to-do list. The yard needs to be scooped. At any moment, my daughters will wake and ask, “What are we going to do today?” What was I talking about? Oh, I was writing my blog about being distracted.

I’ve invested so much time in being distracted that I am too poor to pay attention.

Sound familiar?

News flash: The human brain does not have a multitask function.

I hear my father’s patient voice saying, “One thing at a time, son.”

If you are hoping I am going to give you seven tips to better focus, I’m sorry to disappoint you.

Distraction Recovery

I recommend several great books by Dr. Edward Hallowell, an expert on dealing with distraction, and “Fully Present” by Susan L. Smalley and Diana Winston. Do as they say, not as I do at the moment.

Lately, I’ve cranked up www.simplynoise.com at work to drown out the construction noise from next door. “Brown Noise” is my personal favorite.

The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. Hi, my name is Andy, and I’m a distraction addict.

First step to recovery complete! Man, do I feel better. Oh look, a squirrel! The dogs want to go outside. Here come the kids.

It didn’t take long to relapse.

I hope you will join with me and start to recognize and cut distractions. Distractions are conspiring to rob us of our productivity, sanity, energy, creativity, and focus.

If you’ve made it this far without distraction, there is hope for you yet!

I think Dad is right: “One thing at a time.”

What distracts you? How is distraction impacting your life? What can you do to reclaim your focus?

This is National AD/HD Awareness Week.

Trust me, AD/HD is real!