Pull to Eject

Multitasking is a lie.

The human brain can literally only focus on 1 thing at a time.

Research has consistently found that multitasking is not feasible with cognitive functioning. Even better? Sanbonmatsu et al. (2013) reported that people who think they are good at multitasking are actually not good at it!

Distractions dominate our lives. Multi-screen TV viewing, smart phone notifications, laptops in meetings - in reality we are monotaskers who quickly switch between things. And we suck at it.

Multitasking lowers productivity, slows task completion, decreases task quality, creates stress, and can lead to burnout.

As a business owner, I’ve stupidly hurt productivity, interrupting developers and breaking focused work time with new ideas and commentary. Studies show it takes at least 20 minutes to get back to the level of focus you had before the interruption.

The only COVID positive was learning just how much more we could get done without office distractions.

Focused time working on projects, debugging code, planning, creating, prospecting or whatever - gave many employees the sense that they could do a lot more if left alone.

If you’ve got a half baked startup idea in your desk and a work calendar full of distractions - it might be time to take a long walk.

Alone.

Focus on the important work you want to do.

Now go launch something 🚀 

Modern Tools

Figma is a free design tool to help build your digital product. You no longer need to be a designer to design great applications.

You can use it to do all kinds of graphic design from wireframing websites to designing mobile app interfaces to prototyping designs. Best practices are baked into the browser-based tool. Collaborate with outside vendors if you use them.

Old School Wisdom

The Deep Work Hypothesis: The ability to perform deep work is becoming increasingly rare at exactly the same time it is becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. As a consequence, the few who cultivate this skill, and then make it the core of their working life, will thrive.

Free Knowledge

Entrepreneurship, like creativity, is something we all possess.

Here’s a great free online class about the side of entrepreneurship you won’t learn at a business school. Taught by Berklee College of Music, this unique course teaches ways to tap into your creativity for career development or business innovation.

Visual Crapshoot