I hope that you have had a very satisfying Saturday. I am processing more change elements. I am working on minimizing distractions. I am aware of every external noise. From the wind blowing hard outside that makes me think life may be over as I know it, to the grandkids and their incessant ability to create additional sounds just because. I started working on reducing distractions. Motivated by the book “Think Deeply Again” authored by Miya J. Wills, I have become more sensitive to the external distractions.

Part of my commitment to change is to read, without distractions, every day for thirty minutes. It is a short book, and I have already completed half of the book. I started this project a couple of days ago and got serious as I revamped things I do daily. Encouragement for me is when I work on change for myself and find out what works and what doesn’t. Then I share my change process with others, which may help them make better choices. Application is key in making changes. See it, do it, change it.

Another tip to help remove distractions is to time specific tasks. While using the timer is not new to me, it has become very important to me over the past year. I found out that having a time limit helps me with procrastination (although not a cure-all). It takes away that never-ending or longevity aspect. It’s only thirty minutes or fifteen minutes. My thought process becomes this seems doable. I am then more likely to do it and get it done. Keeping a journal of what distractions come on a daily basis for a week will help me find out what is distracting to me. Identify what distractions change my mood. This process will also help me set boundaries for completing my tasks. And, taking five-to-ten minute breaks helps with boredom and burnout.

The digital element is not excluded in balancing the distractions. I return to using my journals more to cut down on the email and other notifications. When I use Notes on the computer, I still get plenty of distractions. My reasoning to return to the journals, simplify. I did go through the apps on my phone and change the notification settings. I don’t need a notification for everything right now.

All of these steps will help me promote being more focused on what I want to accomplish, including getting more value from what I do. In our current climate, we have become accustomed to doing everything yesterday. This, to me, means we no longer enjoy what we do. We just want to hurry up, get it done, and move on to the next thing. This is stressful. Oh, another aspect of this change is reducing the stress in my life that I can control. In recalibrating my life, the ultimate goal is to enjoy living more.

God bless you and be encouraged.