There are days when you wake up with the sun shining, a sweetness in the air and when you go to work humming. It's the kind of day where motivation is unwavering, even when there's a ton of to-do waiting for us at the office. And then there are the other days, those that never end and where one cannot prevent the mind from wandering and turning away from professional occupations. Look out the window, check your social networks, hang out in the coffee corner… So much wasted time which, we secretly hope, will help make the day go by more quickly. So how do you demonstrate productivity in all circumstances? Cal Newport, a renowned American computer scientist who teaches at Georgetown University and author of the book Deep Work:Rules For Focused Success in a Distracted World (Deep Work:Rules for Focusing on Success in a Distracted World ), explains that the “distraction breaks” mentioned and taken at random have a greater impact on concentration than you might think. Although they represent only a few (tens of) minutes in the day, they contribute to a significant reduction in productivity because they affect the ability to perform the most difficult tasks defined by the notion of "deep work" (" deep work”).
He recommends "fully accepting boredom":in order to maintain maximum productivity, we organize real breaks in our schedule (it's probably easier for people who are teleworking, we recognize that ) so that the brain devotes itself more or less permanently to the activity at the time. In the same way, a task to be done must be completed in a given time, which will annihilate any desire to go for a walk on Facebook and will make deep work sessions more efficient. For those who are unable to implement the expert technique, Cal Newport advises to take a radical decision:erase all traces of social networks for at least 30 days. This is the period necessary to redefine (downward) its dependence on these platforms precisely created to satisfy curiosity. We will rather try the first method and put all the good will possible into it… Living without Instagram, no thanks!
