Focus - Leo Babauta [19]
What else is on your floor? Quickly make decisions: do you absolutely need it? If not, get rid of it. If you do, find a place in a drawer, out of sight and not on the floor. This might mean making room in drawers by getting rid of stuff.
Again, this could take a little longer, so do it in chunks.
clear your walls
Many people have calendars, pictures, memos, motivational posters, reminders, schedules, and more, hanging on their walls near their desk. Those are visual distractions and make it a little more difficult to focus. Clearing your walls, except perhaps for a nice photo or piece of art, is a good idea for creating the perfect environment for focusing.
If you've done the steps above, this one should be easy. Take everything down except for a couple of essential pieces or pleasing photos/artwork. Either get rid of things you don't need, or find an out-of-sight spot for things you do need.
2: slowing down
"There is more to life than increasing its speed."
– Gandhi
The world most of us live in is hectic, fast-paced, fractured, hurried. What's more, most of us are conditioned to think this is the way life should be.
Life should be lived at break-neck speed, we believe. We risk our lives in cars and we break the speed limit, rushing from one place to another. We do one thing after another, multi-tasking and switching between tasks as fast as we can blink.
All in the name of productivity, of having more, of appearing busy, to ourselves and to others.
But life doesn't have to be this way. In fact, I'd argue that it's counterproductive.
If our goal is to create, to produce amazing things, to go for quality over quantity, then rushing is not the most effective way to work. Slowing down and focusing is always more effective.
Rushing produces errors. It's distracting to flit from one thing to the next, with our attention never on one thing long enough to give it any thought or create anything of worth. Hurrying produces too much noise to be able to find the quiet the mind needs for true creativity and profound thinking.
So yes, moving quickly will get more done. But it won't get the right things done.
benefits of slowing down
There are lots of reasons to slow down, but I'll list just a few to give you an idea of why it's important:
Better focus. When you slow down, you can focus better. It's hard to focus if you're moving to fast.
Deeper focus. Rushing produces shallowness, because you never have time to dig beneath the surface. Slow down and dive into deeper waters.
Better appreciation. You can really appreciate what you have, what you're doing, who you're with, when you take the time to slow down and really pay attention.
Enjoyment. When you appreciate things, you enjoy them more. Slowing down allows you to enjoy life to the fullest.
Less stress. Rushing produces anxiety and higher stress levels. Slowing down is calmer, relaxing, peaceful.
a change of mindset
The most important step is a realization that life is better when you move at a slower, more relaxed pace, instead of hurrying and rushing and trying to cram too much into every day. Instead, get the most out of every moment.
Is a book better if you speed read it, or if you take your time and get lost in it?
Is a song better if you skim through it, or if you take the time to really listen?
Is food better if you cram it down your throat, or if you savor every bite and really appreciate the flavor?
Is your work better if you're trying to do 10 things at once, or if you really pour yourself into one important task?
Is your time spent with a friend or loved one better if you have a rushed meeting interrupted by your emails and text messages, or if you can relax and really focus on the person?
Life as a whole is better if you go slowly, and take the time to savor it, appreciate every moment. That's the simplest reason to slow down.
And so, you'll need to change your mindset (if you've been stuck in a rushed mindset until now). To do this,