{"id":1054,"date":"2023-02-04T09:23:26","date_gmt":"2023-02-04T13:23:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parmaks.com\/Resources\/increase-focus-productivity-using-the-5-senses\/"},"modified":"2023-02-04T09:23:26","modified_gmt":"2023-02-04T13:23:26","slug":"increase-focus-productivity-using-the-5-senses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/parmaks.com\/Resources\/increase-focus-productivity-using-the-5-senses\/","title":{"rendered":"Increase Focus & Productivity Using the 5 Senses"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Profit<\/a>
\n<\/p>\n

\n

Are you searching for ways to boost your focus and productivity at work?<\/p>\n

I find that while tips for time management and task prioritization are helpful\u2014\u201dBatch your work!\u201d \u201cMake a to-do list!\u201d\u2014often they ignore the external factors that make it harder to get work done.<\/p>\n

While researching my book about the five senses<\/a>, I discovered that to a great degree, it\u2019s often our surroundings, our screens, and other people that hijack our attention.<\/p>\n

Surroundings<\/strong>: whether we\u2019re working in an office or from home, elements of our environment often grab our attention<\/p>\n

Screens<\/strong>: whether in the form of a smartphone, a computer monitor, or a TV, screens tempt us with entertainment and information<\/p>\n

Other people<\/strong>: Human survival has always depended on our ability to cooperate, and we have an insatiable curiosity about other people.<\/p>\n

Information about other people is so compelling that it can be tough to concentrate in the presence of others\u2014something bemoaned by many office workers who sit in an open-plan design, or by people who work from home with family members nearby.<\/p>\n

These and other external factors make it hard for us to:<\/p>\n

Focus\u2014<\/em>to concentrate; complete the tasks we start; stay alert to errors or oversights; think deeply and creatively; and persist through frustration.<\/p>\n

Be productive\u2014<\/em>to maintain our energy from morning to evening; avoid time-wasting activities or distractions; and identify ways to work more efficiently; learn to use new tools.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s one simple, manageable solution: Tap in to the power of our five senses.<\/strong><\/p>\n

By being mindful of our senses, we can identify factors that\u00a0 support or disrupt our focus, and boost or diminish our productivity.\u00a0With that knowledge, we can improve the experience of the workplace, whether we work in an office, at home, or hybrid.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, this tip is quick, easy, and inexpensive to implement! We don\u2019t need to buy something, take a class, or make an appointment. Our senses are available to us right now<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Note: As we shape our environments, it\u2019s crucial to remember that we all experience our own unique sensory world. If you share surroundings with other people, what feels comfortable to you might not feel comfortable to them. The aim is to create an environment where everyone can thrive.<\/p>\n

30 Ways to Use Your Five Senses to Boost Focus and Productivity<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Seeing:<\/h3>\n

1. Ask yourself: Are you a simplicity-lover or an abundance-lover?<\/a>\u00a0For some people, creativity and productivity are sparked by orderly arrangements, bare counters, empty shelves. Other get a boost from profusion, buzz, piles, and collections.<\/p>\n

Neither way is the \u201cright\u201d or \u201cwrong\u201d way, but if you share a space with someone who prefers a different style, you might need to compromise. If you\u2019re the boss, don\u2019t make the mistake of insisting that everyone do things your way\u2014what works for you might not work for your employees.<\/p>\n

2. Get enough, but not too much, light. (If your eyes feel relief when you make a salute, you have too much light.)<\/p>\n

3. For many people, outer order contributes to inner calm<\/a>, focus, and energy. If you have trouble concentrating because your surroundings are messy and cluttered, take time to establish order. You might\u2026<\/p>\n

4. Follow the one-minute rule<\/a>; anything you can do in less than one minute, do without delay.<\/p>\n

5. Do a daily 10-minute closer<\/a>\u00a0and take ten minutes at the end of the day to organize your work space.<\/p>\n

6. But beware procrasti-clearing<\/a>! I sometimes fall into this trap\u2014when I have a very strong urge to clear clutter as an excuse to delay working on a tough task.<\/p>\n

We often lose time and focus when we\u2019re fussing with our smartphones. Our phones provide valuable tools that save us time and energy, but they also offer many temptations. By changing the appearance of your phone, you can make it work better for you.<\/p>\n

7. Delete time-sucking apps, such as games or social media.<\/p>\n

8. Turn your phone to \u201cgrayscale<\/a>\u201d so its images appear only in white, black, or gray\u2014much harder, and less fun, to use!<\/p>\n

9. Delete apps you don\u2019t use and organize your apps by function, alphabetically, or even\u2014whimsically\u2014by color.<\/p>\n

10. Use your home screen to remind you of an important goal\u2014a friend put the word \u201cWRITE\u201d on her home screen so that each glance at her phone reminded her to stay productive.<\/p>\n

Hearing:<\/h3>\n

11. Just as you clear clutter, clear clatter. Identify and eliminate bothersome noises that distract you while you work. Note: Our brains are wired to be particularly attentive to human voices, so you may be especially distracted by other people\u2019s conversations.<\/p>\n

12. Wear noise-cancelling headphones.<\/p>\n

13. Turn off your smartphone\u2019s notifications sounds so those pings and buzzes won\u2019t interrupt your train of thought.<\/p>\n

14. Play white noise, brown noise, or pink noise<\/a>\u00a0to create a more consistent sound environment. Especially if you\u2019re distracted by overhearing other people talking or moving around, white noise can muffle sounds that might otherwise catch your attention. (My favorite is pink noise.)<\/p>\n

15. Figure out whether listening to music boosts or diminishes your productivity. To work, I need silence or a busy hum (such as a coffee shop), but some people benefit from music. Different sound environments help people to improve their focus and productivity, so shape your surroundings to suit yourself.<\/p>\n

16. Here\u2019s a useful hack: if you need to quiet a group\u2014say, you need to start a meeting with a roomful of people who won\u2019t stop talking\u2014blow into a harmonica. It\u2019s a pleasant sound that instantly communicates, \u201cQuiet, it\u2019s time to start.\u201d<\/p>\n

Smelling:<\/h3>\n

We often disregard our sense of smell, but it\u2019s a very powerful influence and can make a big difference in how we experience an environment.<\/p>\n

17. Use a pleasant smell as a way as a cue, \u201cTime to buckle down.\u201d I have a gardenia-scented candle that I only burn when I really need extra focus, so I associate the scent with times of intense productivity.<\/p>\n

Note: only use this hack when working at home; when working with other people, it\u2019s best to avoid creating smells. People often have very different ideas of what they want to smell!<\/p>\n

18. Because bad smells can drain our energy, tackle a stench at the source. The garbage pail, the fridge, and the microwave are common culprits. (It\u2019s best to avoid using highly scented cleaning products, see point above.)<\/p>\n

Tasting<\/h3>\n

When we work, we sometimes grab a tasty bite as a way to give ourselves boost\u2014and often, we makes choices that aren\u2019t healthy.<\/p>\n

19. If you\u2019re a coffee drinker, drink some coffee! Even if it\u2019s de-caffeinated, many people associate the smell, sight, and taste of coffee with energy and refreshment.<\/p>\n

20. Keep healthy foods near at hand. If it\u2019s easy to pull a bag of chips from the cupboard or vending machine, and it\u2019s hard to assemble a healthy snack, you\u2019ll find it hard to resist temptation. Also, if you\u2019re being productive, you won\u2019t want to break your focus by using your time and attention to prepare foods.<\/p>\n

21. If you\u2019re not hungry, but feeling distracted by your desire to find a sweet or salty snack, brush your teeth.<\/p>\n

22. I find that keeping a sugar-free mint in my mouth helps me concentrate. I don\u2019t know why, but it works. Some people prefer to chew gum.<\/p>\n

Touching<\/h3>\n

23. More and more, people turn to pop fidget toys, therapy dough, weighted blankets, and other touch tools to stay calm, focused, and productive. It helps! I have a fidget spinner that I love\u2014I find it especially helpful when I\u2019m sitting in a long video call. No one on the screen can see or hear what I\u2019m doing, and the activity of my hands helps me concentrate my mind.<\/p>\n

24. Eliminate scratchy shirts or tight pants, and replace an uncomfortable chair or a desk that\u2019s too high or too low. Discomfort can distract and drain us. Along the same lines\u2026<\/p>\n

25. Adjust the temperature of your work space.<\/p>\n

26. If you\u2019re distracted by the TV, store the remote control in a very inconvenient space\u2013ditto, with the phone. If a device is in your hands, you\u2019ll probably use it; if you have to go to a lot of trouble to get it, you won\u2019t thoughtlessly pick it up.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Use Your Five Senses to Take Energizing, Relaxing Breaks<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Our five senses also help us to stay focused and productive by giving us a break<\/em> from focus and productivity! Sometimes, if we want to keep going, we have to allow ourselves to stop.<\/p>\n

Taking a break to indulge in a sensory experience is a quick, easy way to refresh our minds and bodies.<\/p>\n

27. Because research shows that being in the presence of nature both calms and energizes us<\/a>, if you can, stimulate your senses with nature\u2014walk outdoors during your lunch hour, sit near a window that offers natural light and fresh air, add a plant to your work area.<\/p>\n

28. Listening to a favorite upbeat song is one of the quickest, easiest ways to give yourself a boost<\/a>. (Get a bigger boost by dancing along to the music, or doing some jumping jacks.)<\/p>\n

29. Allow yourself to goof around. Research shows that periods of play help us to stay focused and creative<\/a>. Pick up an instrument you haven\u2019t practiced in a while, doodle with colored pencils, smell five jars of spices in the kitchen, walk barefoot and pay attention to the texture of the floor, make a paper airplane, invent a new kind of sandwich.<\/p>\n

30. Strengthen teams by encouraging people to share playful, relaxing sensory experiences. Such team-building activities include:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Remember That People Experience Very Different Sensory Worlds<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Whether we\u2019re working in the office or at home, we often face conflict with others that arise from different sensory experiences and preferences.<\/p>\n

One person like scented candles; someone else finds the smell unbearably strong. One person doesn\u2019t mind the sound of other people\u2019s conversations; someone else is very distracted by the sounds of voices. One person doesn\u2019t mind piles of papers and shelves of trinkets; someone else wants to hide everything in drawers and behind doors. One person turns on all the lights someone else finds the room unbearably bright. One person likes to open windows to feel a breeze and hear outdoor sounds; another person dislikes the draft and the noise.<\/p>\n

Recognizing that people experience sensations in different ways can help us all to be more understanding\u2014not to dismiss people\u2019s objections to sights, sounds, smells, tastes, or touches, but instead to respect them, so that we can create sensory environments in which everyone can feel comfortable.<\/p>\n

With mindful planning and attention, tapping in to our five senses is an important tool for helping us to transform the workplace so that we can be more focused, more productive, more creative, less stressed\u2014and happier.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Profit<\/a>
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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