What is purposeful attention?
I promise I am practicing what I preach...but, I am still working on this one. Noticing something is the first step, right?
Recently, I’ve observed how often we try to fill every bit of our time. Is it to maximize our productivity? Is it to fill every second? Is it due to our dopamine cravings? Are we struggling with bits of ADHD or ADHD-like symptoms? Do we have an addiction to stimuli? How is it all related?
For example, when I exercise I play an audiobook every time. When I go to bed I listen to music. If I am waiting for an appointment I will go on my phone until my name is called. I bring a book and a journal next to my bed in case I wake up in the night. I try to have 4 different conversations with my students at once to make them all feel heard and seen and loop back to check back in with them. I talk on the phone while reading and creating a recipe.
Writing this makes it sound chaotic. And it is. But, for so long, and often still I’ve felt like I was making the most of my limited time by multitasking. I don’t have enough (or make enough time) to read, or listen to music, or watch a show, or exercise, or talk to each kid individually. But when you fill every moment you often lose out on many things.
We already know that multitasking causes productivity to go down- regardless of if it feels otherwise. Recent studies have shown that it goes down by 40% and errors are increased by up to 100%. So instead of doing more, we are doing more less efficiently. What multitasking does is it creates more stress, hinders our short term memory and rewires our brain to crave the dopamine of context switching and multiple stimuli.
Society highlights hustle culture, but really we need slow living. We are already overwhelmed with stimuli. From the news, to social media, to new TV shows/movies/music/deals dropping. We already have health trends of dopamine detoxing, mindfulness, digital detoxes. These fads are intended to help us reset in a world fueled by quick hits neurotransmitters (which ultimately lead to and connect with addiction and ADHD). But we still have as many tabs open in our mind as we do on our computers.
If you’ve been around young people you will notice their inability to keep their attention, or at least *sustained attention* on a single task- that goes for an assignment, to being on their phone, to holding a conversation, to watching a movie. They have to multitask, task switch, or take a break. New research shows that, surprise, our attention spans are shrinking. Ranging from a sustained attention span of 8 seconds for online content (thank you Reels, Youtube Shorts and bullet point posts for rewiring us), to or up to 20 minutes of in person attention.
Side note: I found myself browsing Substack right before this- as I am trying to stay away from other forms of social media - and I found a neat post about websites and podcasts worthy of your time to combat doomscrolling. And guess what? I read a couple paragraphs and I found myself tuning out…. I am a reading teacher!? I love books, I love learning and understanding, but I was trying to read something, while thinking about this post, while looking up to make sure students didn’t have any questions. I wasn’t being purposeful with my attention.
The solution is just that. Purposeful attention. Mindfulness. And this isn’t just some deep breathing. Mindfulness is necessary but it encompasses many things: We need purposeful moments, boredom, thought, entertainment, engagement, nature. We need distractions to be put away.
With that the overwhelm, anxiety, and burnout will lessen and instead peace, creativity, gratitude, self-awareness and connection will flourish.
All of this might sound good but from a functional health standpoint, it is necessary. The rates of fatigue, loneliness, stress , anxiety are high. Multitasking, hustling, context switching, and glamifying being busy is hurting us. From rising blood pressure, to feelings of guilt, and anger. Purposeful attention is necessary now more than ever. And, the best way to start rewiring your brain is to stop filling up each moment and let yourself be bored.
Being bored is something that is foreign in the current day because we also have something to do or something that we could be doing. But boredom is often not a negative thing. It is simply the lack of filling your time. In the quiet, in the calm, in the moment you are often able to engage in more thought. Sit with yourself. Expand upon ideas. Contemplate. How often do people contemplate these days rather than coming up with thoughts on the fly?! How often to people create rather than consume?! I find myself walking now without playing anything, just in nature, admiring, thinking, noticing things I hadn’t before. If I feel the need or desire I will play something like a song or book but more often than not I am enjoying the quiet noises of the outside. Or I am talking to myself and creating a voice note of ideas I have or am working through.
There is nothing wrong with working hard, or being productive. That is commendable and as a fellow high achiever you go! But be purposeful
Being entertained is a part of life- it doesn’t automatically mean a screen or a book. It can come in various forms. And regardless of the form, as long as it is purposeful I think it can be recharging. You're looking up recipes on your phone? Great? You are reading a book because you want to (not to chase productivity measures)? Yes! You are watching a movie with loved ones while keeping your phone in another place. That’s how to do it! You are having a conversation and don’t let others (or yourself) interrupt? Boundaries! This all fosters a greater sense of connection and engagement because you are giving out purposeful time. Time, in this way, becomes a gift.
So, all of this to say, I challenge you to do less and in return you will feel so much more.
If you read all of this, then thank you so much for your sustained attention. You’re already making moves <3