Writing Through the Chaos: Practical Strategies for Staying Focused

Image generated with OpenAi by the Author

  Life throws distractions at us daily.

  It happens today more than ever. Our phones send countless notifications, apps that seem to drain our time, and so much more. There appears to be no escape.

  Putting your phone on "Do Not Disturb" only solves that one issue.

  What about exterior distractions and noise from your environment? If you live in a city or near construction, it's literal noise that can be distracting you.

  It becomes a barrier to our creativity.

  I found myself in this very situation. The roof on my home needed replacing, which meant dealing with construction noise. On the day, the roofers showed up early and got right to work.

  In most cases, I would have been ecstatic if any contractor had shown up early and gotten right to work. It unfortunately affected my usual writing routine. The constant banging, sawing, and scraping didn't seem to let up. Their trucks and equipment blocked my Subaru in, leaving me no escape.

  My daily writing routine was in jeopardy.

  How do we deal with these situations? We can't control everything around us, but we still need to get work done. It can seem hopeless.

  I needed my focus tools.

Noise-Canceling Headphones

  My favorite purchase has been a decent pair of noise-canceling headphones. They reduce the amount of sound that hits my ear quite well, and are now a standard for me to get any focused work done.

  Headphones help to put you into your internal mind. This allows you to focus more on what's right in front of you.

Focus Music

    When I started my writing routine, I found myself struggling to ignore other things around me. This is where focus music has become a game changer.

  Noise-canceling headphones are the first step, but adding focus music has allowed me to achieve so much more. It adds to the noise-canceling effect of the headphones, reducing even more of the noise that might get through.

  Choosing the type of focus music is important.

In my case, I couldn't have anything with lyrics. It would take me out of the flow state. Keep this in mind when you're deciding on your focus music.

  Focus music has another effect. It helps get to the flow state much faster, and keeps me there.

  YouTube and Spotify have huge selections of focus music. I happen to like the ones they make for coders. It has a heavier base beat that seems to put my mind in that flow state more quickly.

Mental Reframing

  This one takes some practice.

Mental reframing is a process where you force your mind to let go of the annoyances of the noise. To put it simply, you tell yourself, "I expect noise. I expect interruptions. But I'm going to write anyway."

  It's easier said than done.

  Saying it aloud helps. When you hear your voice, it has a psychological effect that influences your mindset at a higher level.

  Mental reframing reduces the cognitive drain from noise and interruptions.

Micro Writing Sprints

  In situations where interruptions happen more often, micro writing sprints are the answer. These are fifteen to thirty-minute writing bursts.

  Perfect for beginners getting started with a new writing routine, it allows you to increase your time as you adjust to writing more.

  I use these when my day is full of interruptions. Yes, including when the roofers were working.

  Focus on writing for however long you can, take a break for other things, then go back to it for another sprint. Sometimes adding a walk helps to clear your mind before a writing sprint.

  Noise feels less overwhelming when you only need to focus for a shorter period.

  Consider writing sprints when you're building your focus for longer and longer sessions. Increase the time from fifteen to twenty, then twenty to twenty-five minutes, etc.

These tools are exactly what I needed to complete my writing routine that day.

Trust me, I needed them.

Dealing with distractions, interruptions, and noise can be a royal pain in the you know what. Don't let it get to you, and use these tools to bring your focus back.

Share your experiences and tools you use when you need to focus, I'd love to hear them.