--- title: 4 Secrets to Resisting Distraction and Staying Focused description: Research shows that even in our free time we often don’t do what we enjoy most — we do what is easy. canonical: https://time.com/4516549/4-steps-resisting-distraction-staying-focused/ author: Eric Barker article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-10-04T12:00:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T10:13:58.903Z article:section: Ideas og:title: 4 Secrets to Resisting Distraction and Staying Focused og:description: Focusing on goals can resist boredom og:url: https://time.com/4516549/4-steps-resisting-distraction-staying-focused/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4ddf7289041a03fb/6988a86d8e06010a13467b39/stay-focused-resist-boredom.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: hand clasping globe of light og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 4 Secrets to Resisting Distraction and Staying Focused twitter:description: Focusing on goals can resist boredom twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4ddf7289041a03fb/6988a86d8e06010a13467b39/stay-focused-resist-boredom.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 4 Secrets to Resisting Distraction and Staying Focused by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Oct 4, 2016 12:00 PM UTC  hand clasping globe of light hand clasping globe of lightGetty Images by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Oct 4, 2016 12:00 PM UTC Have you said any of these recently? * _I get distracted and procrastinate._ * _I make plans but I don’t follow through on them._ * _I get things done… but not the right things._ The problem often comes down to just one word: “reactive.” Maybe that wasn’t the word you were expecting. But reactivity is a problem people have been contemplating for thousands of years. And, yes, it’s a bigger issue now than ever. What is it? What can we do about it? Neuroscience and ancient wisdom from Buddhism and Stoicism have answers. Let’s get to it… ## Your Reactive Brain Maybe you’re lazy, maybe you’re not lazy. But one thing is for certain: your brain is. Research shows that even in our free time we often don’t do what we enjoy most — [we do what is easy](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/04/what-do-we-do-with-our-leisure-time-what-trul/). Your brain doesn’t want to waste energy. So it’s always a bit lazy. Problem is, the world is not lazy. These days it’s constantly shouting at you. Sometimes it’s the siren song of entertaining things like text messages from friends and other times it’s scary things like work emails — but it’s shouting. Everything is demanding our attention. We’d like to make a plan and follow through or accomplish goals undistracted but the world seems to be working against you. When I spoke to Duke professor [Dan Ariely](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/10/how-to-be-efficient/), he said exactly that: the world is working against you. Here’s Dan: --- > “” --- Your lazy brain is happy to just react to that relentless bombardment of stimuli coming its way. But when you just react, you don’t usually make the best choices. And while you’re definitely doing _something_, you’re rarely achieving your goals. That’s because when you’re reacting, you’re not in control of your life. In fact, reacting is the _opposite_ of control. You see something fun and you chase it. You see something scary and you run away. Either way, your environment is determining your behavior. It’s ironic that we so often say to others, “Don’t tell me what to do!” And yet, all too often, we’re letting the world around us determine our actions. We’re not starting from plans and decisions, we’re reacting. And these days we’re often sitting there _hoping_ we get a new text, email, update or notification. We’re all but saying, _“Please, tell me what to do.”_ And while technology has made the problem worse, this issue has been around forever. About 2000 years ago the Stoic philosopher [Epictetus said this](http://buy.geni.us/Proxy.ashx?TSID=21272&GR%5FURL=http%3A%2F%2Famzn.to%2F2djYHdq): --- > “” --- (To learn the 7 step morning ritual that will keep you happy all day, click [here](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2016/01/morning-ritual/).) More often we need to step back rather than dive in. But how do we do that? First, we need to prepare… **_Read more:_** [_How To Get People To Like You: 7 Ways From An FBI Behavior Expert_](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/10/how-to-get-people-to-like-you/) ## Control Your Context [Brian Wansink](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/11/how-to-get-in-shape/) is a professor at Cornell who studies eating behavior. And one of the main things he’s found about overeating is that it’s rarely due to hunger. It’s usually due to context. From [Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think](http://buy.geni.us/Proxy.ashx?TSID=21272&GR%5FURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2FB000MAHC0E%2Fref%3Das%5Fli%5Ftl%3Fie%3DUTF8%26camp%3D1789%26creative%3D390957%26creativeASIN%3DB000MAHC0E%26linkCode%3Das2%26tag%3Dspacforrent-20%26linkId%3DP45Z5UQYG5Z2WS4Y): --- > “” --- You eat less when food is farther away and more when it’s closer. Here’s [Brian](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/12/how-to-eat-healthy/): --- > “” --- So when you need to get work done, put your phone on the other side of the room. Make distractions harder to reach. When you have fewer things to react to or you make it harder to react to them, you’ll be less reactive. (To learn the 4 rituals neuroscience says will make you happy, click [here](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/09/make-you-happy-2/).) Preparation is great but that’s just the first line of defense. What do you need to do when you’re face to face with something that’s pulling you into reactive mode? **_Read more:_** [_New Neuroscience Reveals 4 Rituals That Will Make You Happy_](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/09/make-you-happy-2/) ## Stay Calm Take a pause. Something fun is saying “Come play with me!” Or something scary is in front of you and you want to run away and procrastinate. So just pause for a second. As [Marcus Aurelius](http://buy.geni.us/Proxy.ashx?TSID=21272&GR%5FURL=http%3A%2F%2Famzn.to%2F2dHzJqq) said a long time ago: --- > “” --- And modern science agrees. All that emotion is not going to help. [Albert Bernstein](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/12/difficult-conversations/), a clinical psychiatrist, says staying calm is key to making good decisions in the heat of the moment: --- > “” --- [Neuroscientists](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/12/make-you-happy-3/) say stress takes your prefrontal cortex — the rational part of your brain — “offline.” Quite simply, stress makes you stupid. And that’s why just reacting often makes you do stupid things. (To learn how astronauts, Samurai, and Navy SEALs stay calm and make good decisions, click [here](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/05/decision-making).) Okay, you paused. But you can’t just freeze every time something tempting comes up. So what’s next? ## Think About Your Goals Make sure the most important thing _stays_ the most important thing. Even the ancient Stoics knew that. [Epictetus](http://buy.geni.us/Proxy.ashx?TSID=21272&GR%5FURL=http%3A%2F%2Famzn.to%2F2dHzJqq) said: --- > “” --- Not big on Stoicism? The ancient Buddhist practice of mindfulness is on the same page. [Joseph Goldstein](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2016/01/mindfulness/), one of the leading experts in the field, told me something very similar: --- > “” --- And modern neuroscience research agrees with both. Thinking about your long-term goals when you’re tempted by distraction gives your brain a sense of control and can release dopamine which will make you feel better and more motivated. [Alex Korb](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/12/make-you-happy-3/), a neuroscientist at UCLA told me this: --- > “” --- (To learn more about the six rituals that ancient wisdom says can make you happy, click [here](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2016/09/ancient-wisdom/).) You’re calm and you’re thinking about your goals. Now comes the hard part… ## Make A Deliberate Decision Turning down fun distractions is hard. Resisting the urge to procrastinate is _really_ hard. So take a second and _deliberately_ decide not to give in. I know, that sounds waaaaay too easy to be helpful… Wrong. Neuroscience shows pausing and taking the time to make a decision actually helps stop you from engaging in bad behavior. Via [The Upward Spiral](http://buy.geni.us/Proxy.ashx?TSID=21272&GR%5FURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1626251207%2Fref%3Das%5Fli%5Ftl%3Fie%3DUTF8%26camp%3D1789%26creative%3D390957%26creativeASIN%3D1626251207%26linkCode%3Das2%26tag%3Dspacforrent-20%26linkId%3D77N7NCUP6RIJGHSV): --- > “” --- And then, finally, act on that decision. Follow your long-term goals. Here’s neuroscientist [Alex Korb](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/12/make-you-happy-3/): --- > “” --- (To learn more about the neuroscience behind mindfulness, click [here](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2016/08/neuroscience-of-mindfulness/).) Okay, we’ve learned a lot. Let’s round it up and see what happens when we put it into action… **_Read more:_** [_New Harvard Research Reveals A Fun Way To Be More Successful_](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/09/be-more-successful/) ## Sum Up Here’s how to resist distraction and be less reactive: * **Control your context**: You can’t react to what’s not there. * **Stay calm**: Stress makes you dumb. Stress and reacting leads to dumb behavior. * **Think about your goals**: Get Stoicism, mindfulness and dopamine on your side. * **Make a deliberate decision**: When you do, your brain is better able to resist no-no’s. You don’t have to react and answer that text immediately. You don’t have to react to that delicious smell and eat all the cookies. You can pause, stay calm, think about your goals and decide to do the right thing. We’re all so afraid of being bored that we run to any distraction that presents itself. But when we truly engage with the world and focus on our goals, we’re never bored. **Join over 271,000 readers. Get a free weekly update via email** [**here**](http://eepurl.com/o6uAD)**.** [_This article originally appeared on BarkingUpTheWrongTree_](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2016/10/how-to-resist-distraction/)_._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4516549/4-steps-resisting-distraction-staying-focused/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4516549/4-steps-resisting-distraction-staying-focused/"},"headline":"4 Secrets to Resisting Distraction and Staying Focused","datePublished":"2016-10-04T12:00:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T10:13:58.903Z","description":"Focusing on goals can resist boredom","url":"https://time.com/4516549/4-steps-resisting-distraction-staying-focused/","keywords":["Psychology"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4ddf7289041a03fb/6988a86d8e06010a13467b39/stay-focused-resist-boredom.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eric Barker","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eric-barker/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4ddf7289041a03fb/6988a86d8e06010a13467b39/stay-focused-resist-boredom.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"hand clasping globe of light","caption":"hand clasping globe of light","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/psychology/","name":"Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4516549/4-steps-resisting-distraction-staying-focused/","name":"4 Secrets to Resisting Distraction and Staying Focused"}}]}] ```