There is a simple and effective trick for increasing productivity that I have been using with great effect and so can you.
It is called: Turn off The Phone.
Yep, it is that simple. I turn off my cellphone and make a point to leave it in the other room where it is out of sight and mind. When I don’t see it I don’t wonder if I have received any messages, texts or calls and that leaves me free to focus on other tasks.
It Doesn’t Cost A Penny
The best part about my simple solution is that it is free. Doesn’t cost a penny, dime, nickel or quarter. Not only do you get more done you do it while saving cash you would have spent on a bunch of cool gizmos and gadgets.
Granted that is sort of painful for me. I like gadgets and gizmos. If it has bells and whistles and does cool things there is a good chance I am going to want to check it out and maybe even buy it.
But sometimes you have to put down the electronics and get back to basics.
The Electronic Leash
I have a love/hate relationship with my Droid. It is an electronic leash. I love the freedom it provides to get out of the office and work anywhere. I love being able to blog, check the news, set appointments and do all of the other cool things that sucker gives me.
It is truly useful.
But I hate the Pavlovian affect upon my psyche, the need to respond every time I see the light flashing. I don’t like being accosted because I didn’t respond immediately to a text or email.
Sometimes we need space or a moment away from things but technology is making that harder to obtain. It is helping to create an instant gratification society.
That is not always a good thing.
I spent the majority of my life without a phone and did just fine, but I can’t say I want to go back to that time. It is part of that love/hate thing I have with technology and it is impact upon li
Technology’s Impact
CNN has an interesting article about whether technology has ruined handwriting.
Technology is constantly increasing communication speeds, often anticipating words before our brains can send signals to our fingers. But experts say handwriting is being sacrificed for the sake of technology’s convenience. People like Cronquist say they communicate so much via laptops, phones and tablets that they rarely need to scribble a handwritten note.
This trend is reinforced by a 2012 study that found 33% of people had difficulty reading their own handwriting. Docmail, a UK-based printing and mailing company, conducted the study and concluded that one in three participants had not been required to produce something in handwriting for more than half a year. It also found that updating calendars, phone books and reminder notes was more likely to be completed without using a pen. Finally, more than half of participants said their handwriting was noticeably declining.
The state of handwriting in the United States, which celebrates National Handwriting Day every January 23 — John Hancock’s birthday — is not much better, says Wendy Carlson, a handwriting expert and forensic document examiner. Carlson works as an expert court witness, maintaining offices in Denver and Dallas. She says the dramatic decline of handwriting is causing “great” deterioration of the mind.
My penmanship wasn’t great to begin with, but I know it hasn’t improved with age. It has gotten worse because I rarely hand write anything besides my signature and cursive, well I wonder if my kids will ever receive or send a hand written letter that isn’t printed.
Though I have never been big on sending out hand written cards or letters I see why people like them and how they have become more special than to some than they once were.
But that is a different topic than the one I started here and it might even be the topic of my next post because my productivity tip made it possible for me to write this in far less time than if my phone had been next to me.
Pretty damn cool, but I suppose I ought to go turn it on just in case. I would hate to miss out on the opportunity to read that email from the Nigerian prince who wants to share his fortune with me.
This is exactly what I’ve been doing. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be, but my productivity has increased as well. My only challenge when it comes to this is that I have kids and a wife that are trying to get a hold of me 🙂
Jens-Petter Berget Yeah, it helps when you have a little space sometimes. 😉
So true bro. There’s another trick: close the email client on the lap top!
Frank_Strong Yes! That is another good way to avoid going down the rabbit hole.