In Greek mythology, the Sirens were dangerous creatures. They enticed nearby sailors with their enchanting music and singing to shipwreck on the rocky coast on their island. Odysseus (Ulysses) the Greek king of Ithaca was curious as what they sang and their music. On the advice of Circe, he had all of his sailors plug their ears with beeswax and tie him to the mast. He ordered his men to leave him tied tightly to the mast, no matter how much he would beg. When he heard their beautiful song, he ordered the sailors to untie him but they bound him tighter. When they had passed out of earshot, Odysseus demonstrated with his frowns to be released. Some authors state that Sirens were fated to die if someone heard their singing and escaped them and that after Odysseus passed by them, therefore, flung themselves into the water and perished.
The Sirens are all our social media and attention-seeking methods that can put us away from reaching our desired destination. Like Ulysses, we are all tempted to be attracted to things that do not bring value.
Pomodoro method is a nice technique to tie our hands and plug our ears with beeswax. This is a simple method to help us focus on our activity. Say, you want to work on a task and need complete concentration. Put out a timer for 20 minutes and don’t move a muscle until you finish your exercise. More details are on the link above. I found this effective because it teaches us to focus on a certain project for say 20 minutes until you can take a break. This helped me to work on some of my projects effectively.
How do I get to focus?
a. Remove all social media apps from my phone
b. Move my phone away when I work. I take calls that are very important to me. I take calls only from my wife and my son’s school during my work hours.
c. Have a timer for a minimum of 20 minutes each time you want to work on my task or project. I Don’t want to get distracted by my outer environment. Allow myself to be immersed in the work I am doing.
d. Treat myself to something good (tea) once I finish a task. I want to keep doing this until it has become a habit.
Our attention span is lesser than of a gold fish in an aquarium. The only way for us to get better is to tie ourselves and focus.
What measures do you take to focus? Comment below, love to know them.
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