From dealing with the stress of moving cross-country to pursuing the next chapter in my career, rituals of self-care and productivity have been the secret to thriving during these big life changes, not succumbing to them. In the spirit of my last post about mindfulness, I wanted to share another approach I’ve been employing for self-growth: deep work. Before going into detail, this can quickly be thought of as productivity without distraction, specifically the kind of ubiquitous distraction that lives on the internet and is accessible 24/7 with the swipe of a finger. Becoming aware of my own mindless use of social media and web browsing – starting with checking my phone first thing in the morning – is what led me to realize I was selling myself short on what I could accomplish with my time and energy on a daily basis. 

In the words below, I’ve laid out personal reflections on how our habits of distraction can deplete the potential of our days. Drawing from Cal Newport’s Deep Work, I’ve extracted some guidelines on how to avoid this all too common digital pitfall and instead create rituals and space for realizing our potential for great work. 

Mornings are sacred

Returning to Atlanta before setting off to New York City, it didn’t take long for my husband and I to become reacquainted with the pervasiveness of distraction in our daily lives. Having spent considerable time with our older parents, the following scene played out every morning without fail: walking into the kitchen and finding said parent, barely awake, coffee in hand, completely engrossed in their cell phone. The day had barely started, and a tiny screen blasted headlines and opinions from social media soapboxes into their brain before they had a chance to acknowledge a new 24 hours had begun. They often went a step further, announcing the headlines (usually something egregious or provocative) with exasperation, but also as if they were doing us a service. This is hardly a unique scene.

It is no wonder then, that when I share something I’ve written, they lovingly react as if I’m a goose who has laid a golden egg: “I can’t believe you wrote this!” Though I’m extremely grateful to have loved ones who care enough to read thoughts I’ve strung together, the truth is it’s not actually that remarkable or miraculous. There are simply two things at play in my service: 1 – Through my education, I’ve learned how to articulate coherent points and write effectively, and 2 – More importantly, when I sit down to do any kind of work, I’m not distracted. 

From the moment I wake up, I make concerted efforts to avoid any kind of distraction that may take my brain hostage. At least for the next several hours, I do my best to follow a set of rituals and routines in order to coax out the best work I know I’m capable of for the day. This work, it turns out, is deep work, which is imperative if I want to continue making a living as a knowledge worker. And to do deep work, I cannot afford to start my day by filling my brain with a digital media information dump, in every sense of the word. 

At this stage in my life, mornings are sacred. They serve as an opportunity to reflect on what can be realized with a new day and provide a quiet, calm space for renewal and rituals of self-care. In order to cultivate this appreciation for the morning, I’ve had to unlearn the unhealthy habit of immediately checking my phone upon waking. Aside from the alarm and weather apps (and okay, Spotify’s meditation playlist), I avoid looking at my phone at all costs. Because I know my work for the day will require me to be in front of a screen for several hours, I make an effort to start the day with anything else. This is the first step I take in order to set myself up for what matters most if productive output is the goal: undistracted stretches of deep work.

Deep work

So what is this “deep work” anyway? Author and Georgetown University professor Cal Newport coined this term and has written numerous books on how to cultivate work habits to unlock our full potential as professionals. Essentially, deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task (Newport, Deep Work). And when we repeatedly engage in deep work, we not only succeed in achieving more with the hours of our day, we also uncover true fulfillment as a by-product of our uninterrupted concentration.

This concept isn’t new, obviously, but it’s easily lost in the digitally-distracting age we live in. According to Newport, too often deep work is replaced by shallow work: “non-cognitively demanding, logistical-style tasks, often performed while distracted” (6). When we allow distractions like social media and web browsing to interrupt our flow, we are dulling our cognitive abilities by context switching between important work and a bunch of noise. This pervasive habit ultimately leads to selling yourself short on what you’re capable of accomplishing. It’s not that you’re an undisciplined person; it’s just a convenient bad habit. “You have a finite amount of willpower that becomes depleted as you use it,” according to Newport. “Your will, in other words, is not a manifestation of your character that you can deploy without limit; it’s instead like a muscle that tires” (100).

So how do we set ourselves up to work deeply and avoid distraction? By creating and – most importantly – sticking to rituals and routines. Newport points out that the key to succeeding in sticking to habits that are conducive to deep work is to move beyond good intentions. This means being pragmatic about developing a routine for your working life that is designed to minimize the amount of your limited willpower necessary to transition into and maintain a state of unbroken concentration (100). 

Getting in the flow of a good habit removes the temptation to context switch, which is ultimately the biggest enemy of deep work. According to Newport, “If you suddenly decide, for example in the middle of a distracted afternoon spent browsing the internet, to switch your attention to a cognitively demanding task, you’ll draw heavily from your finite willpower to wrest your attention away from the online shininess. On the other hand, if you deploy smart routines and rituals – perhaps a set time and quiet location used for your deep tasks each afternoon – you’d require much less willpower to start and keep going. In the long run, you’d therefore succeed with these deep efforts far more often” (100).

It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? But like all things that work well, attention to design is key. And here is where idiosyncrasy and personality can lead the way! Assuming you have some control over where and when you do your biggest stretches of work, you can set yourself up for deep work success. Consider the following from Newport:

1. Where you’ll work and for how long: Your ritual needs to specify a location for your deep work efforts. Planning a set amount of time for deep work is also crucial. Personally, I have daily access to a quiet room that isn’t where I sleep, and a desk by a sunny window.
   
   
2. How you’ll support your work: Your ritual also needs to ensure your brain gets the support it needs to keep operating at a high level of depth. For example, the ritual might specify that you start with a good cup of coffee, or access to the right type of food in order to maintain energy, or the integration of light exercise such as walking to help keep the mind clear. This point is crucial because a ritual that tends to your needs in advance will ensure you don’t waste mental energy figuring out what you need in the moment. Providing your mind with the structure and commitment it needs allows you to slip into a state of focus where you can begin to create things that matter (121).

I exercise, meditate, and eat a solid meal so I’m not distracted by fatigue, unnecessary concerns, or hunger before settling into a flow of deep work. Looking forward to and enjoying these rituals is the reason why I avoid looking at my phone upon waking. Experience has taught me that whatever digital noise I let into my brain upon waking will set a tone for distraction and context switching for my most productive hours.

Do I succeed at this every single day? Of course not, I’m human. But most days I find myself in a rhythm and space that I’ve devoted considerable time and energy into curating in order to produce my best work. Once you set yourself up for deep work, the hours fly and your output flows. Try it; you just might impress yourself. And ultimately, that’s the one person who really matters.

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Work Cited:

Newport, Cal. Deep Work. Grand Central Publishing, 2016.