3151: The Focus Launch List by Anthony Ongaro of Break the Twitch on Productivity & Self-Help

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[00:01:00] This is Optimal Living Daily episode 3151,

[00:01:04] The Focus Launch List by Anthony Angaro of BreakTheTwitch.com

[00:01:09] and I'm Justin Molek, your personal narrator,

[00:01:11] the guy reading you articles every single day of the year

[00:01:14] to add a bit more inspiration, motivation and happiness to your day.

[00:01:19] And with that let's get right to our next post as we optimize your life.

[00:01:24] The Focus Launch List by Anthony Angaro of BreakTheTwitch.com

[00:01:33] When most of the tasks we have to do are more involved,

[00:01:37] yet we haven't established focus momentum,

[00:01:40] we jump from thing to thing without actually completing much.

[00:01:45] This tends to be accompanied by a bit of anxious energy

[00:01:48] or overwhelm around having a lot of options for what to do.

[00:01:52] But often we're lacking some clarity on what is most important.

[00:01:56] Sometimes it all feels important, or it all is important.

[00:02:01] Especially with more complex priorities,

[00:02:03] a secondary challenge comes when you aren't sure how to get started with that individual task.

[00:02:09] The irony of this situation is that we have so much to do

[00:02:12] that we feel like we don't have time to stop, assess and set things up so we can get zoned in.

[00:02:18] Here are some simple steps to re-center and move forward.

[00:02:22] This Focus Launch List should take about 20-30 minutes,

[00:02:26] but will save hours of wasted time and effort.

[00:02:30] The Focus Launch List

[00:02:32] 1. Breathe

[00:02:35] Pause everything, and I mean everything,

[00:02:38] and take a bunch of deep, slow breaths.

[00:02:41] Silence your phone and put it far away,

[00:02:43] close your eyes,

[00:02:45] and push the CO2 that has been chilling in the bottom of your lungs for the last two hours,

[00:02:49] and let your houseplants have it.

[00:02:52] 2. Grab a notebook and pen

[00:02:55] Turn to a new page and leave it open next to you, pen uncapped, ready to roll.

[00:03:01] 3. Clear workspace

[00:03:04] Take five minutes and remove everything from your desk that might be a visual distraction.

[00:03:08] Papers, post-it notes, memory cards, books, empty coffee cups, etc.

[00:03:14] As you go, make a note in your notebook for anything you don't want to forget if you find a post-it note with grocery items on it.

[00:03:20] Don't list specific grocery items, just write something like

[00:03:24] Grocery shopping, list on post-it note in desk drawer.

[00:03:28] You don't have to throw things away, just note them and store them away.

[00:03:33] 4. Clear digital space

[00:03:36] Close everything on your computer.

[00:03:38] Save any unfinished work, bookmark browser tabs that you don't want to lose, and close them.

[00:03:44] Even if you're going to open something right back up in a bit, close it for now.

[00:03:48] By the end, you should be able to restart your computer safely without losing any work.

[00:03:53] Similarly, if there is something you're in the middle of that you need to come back to,

[00:03:57] note what it is and where to find it in your notebook.

[00:04:01] Respond to Janelle, main email inbox.

[00:04:05] 5. Clear brain space

[00:04:08] You likely have some things listed already, but take everything else bouncing around in your brain and write it down in the notebook now.

[00:04:15] Don't think too hard about it, just jot down any concerns you have on what's going on right now.

[00:04:20] I haven't shaved in three days. Did the dog go out yet? Library book needs to be returned.

[00:04:26] This doesn't have to be exhaustive, just let any concerns you have flow onto the page.

[00:04:32] Your computer has to use its processing power to keep all those extra applications running at the same time,

[00:04:37] closing them frees up more juice for the task at hand. Your brain needs the same thing.

[00:04:43] 6. Sort notes

[00:04:46] Sure, you haven't shaved in three days, but unless you're showing up to a photo shoot later, another day might not be a big deal.

[00:04:53] This page is your beehive, it's busy, chaotic and relatively disorganized, but it's all there.

[00:05:00] 7. Identify two things

[00:05:02] A quick win and an urgent or important today task.

[00:05:07] Quick win? Walk the dog.

[00:05:10] Important? Write investor update letter.

[00:05:13] 7. Momentum play

[00:05:16] Go do the quick win right now, and if it's something that doesn't require a lot of mental processing,

[00:05:21] use the time to think through how you're going to approach the important thing.

[00:05:25] What's the first sentence of the letter? What information needs to be included?

[00:05:29] Visualize yourself crafting this letter.

[00:05:32] 8. Affirm success

[00:05:35] Cross out the quick win task that you just completed and yell, boom!

[00:05:39] Or maybe do a stupid quiet dance or something to not scare your dog or neighbors.

[00:05:44] Yes, actually do this. You made progress. Celebrate it.

[00:05:49] Next.

[00:05:50] 9. Set the stage

[00:05:53] Flip to a clean page in your notebook and write the one task at the top.

[00:05:58] Jot a few quick notes underneath reflecting on any considerations you had while doing whatever your quick win was.

[00:06:04] If, on the computer, open the one or two things you need to complete the task,

[00:06:09] and if it's something like writing, take those notes from your notebook and dump them into the page so you have some guidelines to start with.

[00:06:16] Go to the bathroom. Get a glass of water. Airplane mow your phone.

[00:06:21] Tell any cohabiting humans that you're going to be zoning in for the next 90 minutes.

[00:06:26] Turn on block site or whatever distraction killer you use.

[00:06:30] Start a kitchen timer for however long you're going to work for.

[00:06:33] If your work period aligns with one of our focus group times in the community, all the better.

[00:06:38] 10. Do the thing

[00:06:41] Build off of whatever guidelines you created to start with and expand on them.

[00:06:46] Don't sit with a blank page or spreadsheet or whatever. Just add something.

[00:06:51] Copy and paste this paragraph into it if you need to.

[00:06:54] Start now. Don't make it perfect. Put clay on the table so you have something to sculpt.

[00:07:00] 11. Dump distractions

[00:07:03] You're going to think of things. You're going to think of the funniest tweet you've ever twote.

[00:07:07] And you're going to want to tweet it right now. You may not.

[00:07:11] Write said tweet in the notebook, which should still be open on your desk, and get right back to it.

[00:07:16] Dump it from your brain and move on.

[00:07:20] You're going to remember a grocery item you forgot to put on your list.

[00:07:23] Dump it in your notebook and go back. Don't hang on it. Just release it.

[00:07:29] 12. Repeat the process

[00:07:32] At a certain point, you won't be writing in your notebook anymore

[00:07:35] and you'll overcome the discomfort required to enter a flow state.

[00:07:39] Sure, this focus launch list might have eaten 30 minutes of your day,

[00:07:43] but you just got 90 minutes of focused work done,

[00:07:46] likely in a flow state that multiplies output by 2 to 5 times.

[00:07:50] If there's more to do on the task, throw your hands in the air like you're the two times world champ,

[00:07:55] take a short break, and set up again for round 2.

[00:07:59] If the progress you've made is enough for the day, play Celebration by cooling the game on Spotify and take a break.

[00:08:05] Or you can always go back to your list for another task and continue with the momentum you've built.

[00:08:10] After two or three of these 90 minute blocks, you're done.

[00:08:14] The end.

[00:08:15] While the explanation may be lengthy, each of these items on the focus launch list usually only take a minute or two.

[00:08:22] This is how you can save your day, calm the bouncy ball brain, and make forward progress on important work.

[00:08:28] Respect the process by giving it the space it needs, and you will reap its rewards.

[00:08:34] You know, it's the whole if you don't have time to meditate for one hour, you should meditate for two wisdom.

[00:08:40] Good luck and have fun with it.

[00:08:44] You just listened to the post titled, The Focus Launch List by Anthony Angaro of BreakTheTwitch.com, and I'll be right back with my commentary.

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[00:10:06] Think it, Anthony. It's age old advice. Actually a couple of things in this post are, I think.

[00:10:12] Simply taking a breath. It sounds so simple that it's almost ridiculous, but if you've never paused and just done that, give it a try.

[00:10:22] Same with writing things down. That one comes up quite often on my brother's podcast, Optimal Health Daily, when it comes to exercise and goals.

[00:10:32] There's something about putting it to pen and paper that makes it more real, and it really seems to help with productivity too.

[00:10:40] I'm all for doing a brain dump on paper. I find that's the best way to declutter the mind, just write it all out.

[00:10:47] You might think you can think your way to clarity, but in my experience, that doesn't work.

[00:10:53] But actually dumping everything in your mind onto paper where you're not allowed to stop writing for 5-10 minutes straight,

[00:11:00] that for me has great results of clearing the mind.

[00:11:04] And of course, clearing the desk helps too. I find my mind clutters right back up again if my workspace is cluttered.

[00:11:11] So plenty of things to think about in this one. Thank you to Anthony for the ideas.

[00:11:16] But that should do it for now. Thank you for listening and being here, even for Friday and weekend episodes.

[00:11:22] And I'll see you tomorrow over the weekend where your optimal life awaits.