Definition

A distraction takes your attention away from what you're supposed to be doing. It can also be a pleasant break.

Distractions are caused by: the lack of ability to pay attention; lack of interest in the object of attention; or the great intensity, novelty or attractiveness of something other than the object of attention.

Results

Average person checks his phone 200-500 times every single day
People constantly check emails, social media, news
People often lack focus and multitask producing mediocre results

Attention Residue
Digital Dementia
Cognitive Bandwidth

Behind the terms

Attention Residue

Attention residue* represents the extent to which a person’s attention is only partially focused on a current activity (task or social interaction) because a prior activity is still holding part of his or her attention. More precisely, that prior activity has stayed active in working memory - up through the present - and keeps attracting attention even though one has had to engage in another activity. * The term was coined by Sophie Leroy in her paper WORK TASK TRANSITIONS AND ATTENTION RESIDUE

Digital Dementia

Digital Dementia is a term introduced by neuroscientist Manfred Spitzer. When we overuse technology, we lose some of our cognitive abilities much the same as people who have suffered a head injury, psychiatric illness or a stroke. Spitzer says people who rely too heavily on technology can suffer from a deterioration of brain function like short-term memory. He also proposes that short-term memory pathways will start to deteriorate from underuse if we overuse technology.

Cognitive Bandwidth

Cognitive or Mental Bandwidth aka mental space is our capacity to allocate and use our limited cognitive resources effectively. Bandwidth refers to our cognitive capacity and our ability to pay attention, make good decisions, stick with our plans and resist temptations. It is the maximum amount of thinking that’s available per unit of time.

What is productivity?

While there is no single definition of productivity that everyone agrees upon, productivity is commonly defined as the ratio of outputs over inputs [Robert D Pritchard. 1995].

Productivity means different things in different settings. One person might spend an hour exercising in the morning before dropping the kids at school and consider the day a success. Another might opt to use that time locked in her office, returning emails and calling a few clients, and feel equally accomplished. A productive weekend might involve walking through the park with your kids, while a productive workday involves rushing them to daycare and getting to the office as early as you can. (Charles Duhigg, “The Power of Habit”)

Productivity is the name we give our attempts to figure out the best uses of our energy, intellect, and time as we try to seize the most meaningful rewards with the least wasted effort. It’s a process of learning how to succeed with less stress and struggle. It’s about getting things done without sacrificing everything we care about along the way. (Atul Gawande – an American surgeon, writer and a researcher).

Productivity is a measure of efficiency of a person completing a task. We often assume that productivity means getting more things done each day. Wrong. Productivity is getting important things done consistently. And no matter what you are working on, there are only a few things that are truly important. Being productive is about maintaining a steady, average speed on a few things, not maximum speed on everything. (James Clear, “Atomic Habits”)

Productivity is about how much you accomplish. Productivity is not about cramming more into our days but about doing the right thing in each moment. It is all about better management of one of the three categories: time, attention, and energy. (Chris Bailey, “The Productivity Project” and “Hyperfocus”)