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What is the optimal number of distractions? 🧐

2024-04-26 · Short · Ali · recording, 0:54 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Productivity and time · mode: Answering questions · tags: Evidence-based framing, His own products discussed

In a Short, asked whether the optimal number of distractions is zero, Ali cites a study from Feel-Good Productivity in which some switching between puzzles proved better than strict single-tasking, so there seems to be an optimal number; he treats people who come to talk to him while he works as welcome distractions.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Is the optimal number of distractions zero? The puzzle-switching study and welcome distractions

  • ★★ Ali cites a study in Feel-Good Productivity in which people solved a Sudoku and other puzzles in different tabs and could switch between them; some amount of switching between tasks turned out to be good for them, a sweet spot, against the usual advice to focus exclusively on one thing at a time. (hedged) — 00:00:00 · Feel-Good Productivity (book)
  • ★★★ Ali says there does seem to be some kind of optimal number of distractions, rather than zero. (hedged) — 00:00:29
  • ★★ When someone comes to talk to Ali while he is working on something, he does not let it faze him: he thinks of such interruptions as welcome distractions. — 00:00:29

Threads in this video

Mentioned

Central: welcome distractions

Also: Feel-Good Productivity (book)

Also centred on welcome distractions: How to Stay Focused While Studying - Evidence-based Tips · If you're a student at uni, try this 😊

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