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You very well could be suffering from SADD -- situational attention
deficit disorder -- a term coined by Anderson Consulting Institute for
Strategic Change. Specifically, most of us are now in situations in which we
are bombarded by so many demands for our attention that our brains close
down.
It’s a phenomenon of our time. Our brains, evolved over eons to respond
to our environment and each other are exponentially being taxed by the
growth in information and technology. Everyone and everything is vying for
attention. We are hardwired to respond but when it’s deluged like that,
the brain just “goes blind”. Engineers discovered this phenomenon when
they installed hundreds of communication devices in cockpits, thinking it
would improve the pilot’s performance. Instead, when the pilot’s
performance decreased.
Information and technology will no go away. But there are ways to turn
from “SAAD” to glad.
1.
Determine your priorities and focus on them.
Don’t let yourself be pulled into anything from meetings, to readings, to
conversations that thwart your priorities. Literally block out space on your
daily to-do list for things that are important to you: from projects, to
exercise, to family time. Hold these times as sacred.
2.
Say “no” to answering every message.
The average American receives 201 phone, paper, and e-mail messages a day.
Take care of those that are priority and let the rest drop off. Ignore the
messages that are uninvited and unnecessary.
3.
Let technology work for you in prioritizing.
Called ID and voice mail can allow you to screen calls. For those who depend
upon business coming in via phone and need to take every call, develop a way
to shorten incoming sales calls. Telemarketing calls that come in via a
computer dial-up have a few seconds of silence before a voice is heard. If
that’s the case, just hang up. If you are solicited, ask them to please
out your name on the DO NOT call list. And then hang up.
4.
Create a centering place.
Whether it is in the silence of your car, or in a shower, or closing your
door, take 15 minutes per day to practice paying attention to ONE thing:
your breathing, a flower, a fish tank. Like the muscle in our bodies, the
brain gets strong I the places where we train it. Focus turns SADD into
glad!
About the Author:
Eileen McDargh, CSP,
CPAE, is an international speaker, author and seminar leader. Her book ‘Work
for A Living and Still Be Free to Live’ is also the title of one of her
most popular and upbeat programs on Work/Life Balance. For more information
on Eileen and her presentations, please call 949-496-8640 or visit her web
site at http://www.eileenmcdargh.com
