How my Millenial attention span was destroying my creativity

As a social media marketer by trade, I’ve always been an early adopter of attention-sucking technology. But problems arise when those interests collide with my desire to be a more mindful, present person.

I had just started working remote about 50% of the time when my attention span started to shorten. And shorten. And shorten. The constant notifications and calls for my attention made it difficult to do one task at a time, and do it well. I felt anxious, unproductive, and dissatisfied. Worst of all, I felt like I was losing my creative edge. I wasn’t giving my brain any time to come up with ideas on its own.

I snapped when I realized how many personal and professional responsibilities were suddenly on my plate. With so many things to do in smaller windows of time, I couldn’t afford to have sloppy time management skills.

Here’s what I did:

I installed News Feed Eradicator on Chrome. It replaces your Facebook newsfeed with a quote that reminds you how short life really is.
I removed all social media apps and most news apps from my phone. (Losing Snapchat was probably the hardest.)
I turned off Outlook notifications. The email can wait 25 minutes!
I started using the Pomodoro Technique, which requires you to stay on task for 25 minutes at a time, then take a 5 minute break.

Here’s what happened:

My attention span improved within a couple of days. I was finally able to do one task for longer periods of time without jumping to something else.
As part of practicing the Pomodoro Technique, every time I thought of something off-task, I wrote it down and came back to it later. This way I acknowledged the thought without letting it derail my current task.
Because most of my messages go to desktop, and my social media apps were uninstalled, I had no reason to bring my phone with me to the lunch line or corner store.
I spent more time enjoying the present because I wasn’t picking up my phone to Snapchat my latest cup of frozen yogurt.
I stopped looking at my phone while walking, on public transit, or in a Lyft. Suddenly I found myself more open to conversation while on transit, and safer while walking. (I still listen to podcasts, though.)
Because my mind had more time to roam during my newfound empty time, so many creative ideas came to mind! My brain felt like it got a jump start.
I felt less anxious because I had spare time to think things through.
I’m pretty sure I increased my work productivity by at least 25%.
Because I was consuming less news, my mood improved. I felt less weighed down by the current state of American politics.
I felt more in control of my day overall.

With people spending less time on social media overall, I know I’m not the only one who needed a break.