With a mind that’s swimming in a cocktail of neurodivergence, one among my most persistent enemies has at all times been procrastination. I used to be as soon as instructed that my consideration span is, on a scale of 1 to 10, both 15 or random. But as arduous as it’s to beat—a situation that feels extra nature than nurture—it’s one thing I’m studying to handle.
Weeks in the past, I made a decision I couldn’t get arbitrary mind chemistry get in the way in which of productiveness, and so I took issues into my very own fingers. I wanted to cease being so distracted and to alter some habits, however I wasn’t going to do it alone. I used to be going to make use of expertise to assist me.
Now, a few weeks on from implementing these tweaks, I really feel prefer it’s been reasonably profitable. Here’s what I did.
Stop procrastination useless in its tracks
The first and most impactful change I knew I might make was to chop out a bunch of social media utilization. I’m no voracious consumer, however I’m a sucker for scrolling by way of subreddits and diving into deep discussions on the trivia of my varied hobbies and pursuits.
As a lot as I’ve realized doing that through the years, I’ve additionally developed unhealthy habits of following politics far too carefully—and the information cycle is nothing however a doomscroll gap ready to occur in 2025.
So, I took drastic measures. I put in the BlockSite extension on each internet browser (besides one, in case I have to verify Reddit or Twitter for work) and utterly blocked probably the most distracting websites. I did the identical on my telephone too, because it’s that little black mirror that’s in all probability responsible for many of my procrastination. I additionally put in NoScroll on my telephone to dam shorts and reels. That stuff is crack to an ADHD mind.
Jon Martindale / Foundry
If you’d fairly take a much less puritanical strategy to managing the websites and providers that tempt you to procrastinate, extensions like StayFocusd could make it simpler to restrict your time fairly than block total websites completely. If you’re like me, although, excising the entire behavior chilly turkey is a better change to make than having a lesser drip feed of it.
Whatever the case, chopping out distractions leaves me with little to do however give attention to the duty at hand—and it really works to encourage better focus.
The carrot alongside the stick
The first time I sat on the bathroom after blocking every thing, I had a weird second the place I used to be gazing my telephone with my thoughts telling me there’s one thing fascinating there to do. But I’d blocked every thing I often do. What was I even this factor for?
That was a first-rate alternative to not simply hinder my dangerous habits however to reward the great ones. How am I going to enhance my consideration span? By doing issues that require better consideration.
Mozilla
So I stocked my toilet with an inexpensive e-reader with a couple of novels I’ve been neglecting. I additionally put in Pocket on my phone. While Firefox lately introduced that it’s discontinuing Pocket, there are comparable alternate options and the premise is all the identical: save articles and internet content material to learn or watch later when you may have time.
Now when I’ve time to kill, it’s with one thing extra mentally nourishing than Reddit or TikTok. At the very least, I come out of it with much less mind rot; at finest, I’m creating higher consideration.
Boring and silent are associates of focus
Modern electronics and software program are designed to seize and maintain our consideration with colours, lights, fast hits of compelling content material, snazzy animations, and many others. For me, it wasn’t sufficient to keep away from social media and different distracting websites. Part of me was nonetheless drawn to the beautiful icons and animations on my telephone—so I made a decision to make it boring, too.
Enter Minimalist Phone, a paid app (with a free trial) that turns your telephone right into a boring brick of black, overhauling the complete OS to look as uninteresting and uninteresting as potential. That means no extra icons, solely textual content for every thing, and it’s all black and white, but you’ll be able to nonetheless handle apps and providers with ease due to its intuitive navigation.
Jon Martindale / Foundry
But Minimalist Phone goes additional than that. It additionally has an app blocker that allows you to limit sure apps to a schedule, or set mindfulness pauses earlier than working sure apps, and even create a wholly separate work profile with completely different habits if you’re “in focus mode.” It also can filter unimportant notifications so that you aren’t distracted by alerts.
I personally made a degree of disabling all pointless notifications on Teams, Slack, and different work communication instruments. For those I saved, I made the notifications monochrome and silent. That means I solely know if somebody despatched me a message after I select to verify in—not when the app desires me to know—and that makes it simpler for me to remain on job.
Speaking of staying on job, I additionally have ChatGPT send me occasional reminders utilizing its scheduled duties characteristic. It’s simply little issues like a discover within the morning to begin my day or a immediate to verify I get finished a sure job by a deadline. Could I take advantage of a conventional reminder app? Sure, however ChatGPT’s natural variations make me much less prone to skip them. Plus, I’m already paying $20 per month for ChatGPT Plus. Might as effectively use it!
A greater strategy to procrastinate
Breaking previous habits isn’t straightforward. Even with blocks in place, I nonetheless really feel the urge to procrastinate—and even after I’m reminded to not, I nonetheless need to discover workarounds. For me, it isn’t believable to by no means procrastinate. That’s why I enable myself to procrastinate in higher methods.
Maybe after I full a job, I fireplace up my Chess.com account for a fast sport. In between writing tasks, I’d give myself a couple of minutes with my most popular idle sport: Ropuka’s Idle Island. Yes, it’s nonetheless a sport, however not less than it’s designed for drip leisure. It doesn’t hook me for hours and hours, and the nippiness lo-fi soundtrack retains it mellow.
Jon Martindale / Foundry
On canine walks, I’m making myself take heed to audiobooks fairly than shorter-form brain-rot content material. And don’t underestimate the facility of analog actions! I took up a brand new interest in knitting. I received’t fake it doesn’t really feel like a whim for now, however I’m giving it a go as a strategy to detox from tech and procrastinate in a extra productive manner. Every second away from my telephone helps to coach away my urges to procrastinate.
Jon Martindale / Foundry
Overcoming procrastination is a long-term undertaking, one that may in all probability stay a battle for the remainder of my life. But I already really feel a number of the optimistic advantages of those mitigating methods. I’m much less hooked on scrolling and extra content material general. I’m a bit extra centered and a bit simpler. We’ll see how lengthy it lasts.