The older I get the more I understand that I can’t properly focus on or enjoy something unless I give it my full undivided attention. When I was younger I thought I was a very skilled multi-tasker. Multi-tasking—as it turns out—is just another way to say half-assing it.
So many aspects of my life need full attention. My art, my marriage and other relationships, even a tv show or a book, just cannot be properly absorbed unless I am fully fixed on it.
As I said before, I considered myself a multitasker for a long time. I was always drawing in front of the TV or in class or even in church (thank you Mum & Dad for allowing such rebellion) and could still retain the gist of what I’d heard. And while I can still do that for the most part, I’m not sure I still want to.
These days I feel very convicted to give my full attention to whatever I’m doing or whoever I’m with. This could be out of guilt or fear that I’ve missed too much over the years. But I think it goes deeper than that. I’ve never had an amazing attention span, but lately I fear it’s at an all-time low, thanks to our phones and social media and the ever-present state of the world at our fingertips.
As a millennial, my early childhood was pretty much device-free. Sure, we could laze around in front of the television for too long, or waste some hours playing Nintendo but we certainly didn’t have a tablet or phone to supplement our Saturday morning shows. Our attention was on one thing–and it was often a shared thing. I grew up in a small house so if the TV was on, we were all watching it together. If I was playing video games, it was usually with my brother, sitting next to me, and not unseen virtual “friends” online.
You get the gist.
I just want my mind to go in one direction again. Sure my imagination wanders in any given situation regardless if I have my phone or not. But I’d bet money that my attention span is monumentally worse than it used to be.
For a few years, every summer I would ditch social media for a month. I originally tried it for the same reason I am writing this post–to improve my attention span. It worked.
My mind was clearer, my conversations were deeper, I read more books, played more music, made more art. I loved it and I want it again. When you spend all evening doing things with your hands like art or writing or playing music or reading a book (a real paper book), you sleep better. In the morning, if the first thing you take in is the sunrise, or your partners’ smile, or the soft fur of your dog’s neck as you nuzzle into them—isn’t that such a better start to your day than some panicky post about the state of the world?
I want that back. And the more I let my attention scatter all over the place, the less likely I am to get it back.
As said before, I am pretty good at drawing and listening to something simultaneously. I do enjoy a good audiobook while I make art, or conversations with my artsy friends while we draw or paint together. That’s good intentional activity. But I really want to incorporate a practice where I let myself become completely engrossed in one project with nothing else. To work on a drawing or painting or linocut (my latest obsession) with all my energy and thought allows me to get into a state of flow and creativity I can’t quite tap into otherwise.
This practice involves leaving the phone off or in another room on silent. I won’t even listen to an audiobook. Just me and the work in front of me for at least an hour. Now, I do love me some background music, but I think there is something beneficial in complete silence occasionally.
I think these practical attempts to gain a longer attention span do work. I don’t have statistics to back them up. Just my own experience, and a little common sense tell me it seems like a wise endeavour in today’s world.
Go do something with your hands. Look people in the eye when you talk to them. Listen to an album you love and do nothing else while you listen. Take note of why you love it.
Give what you love your time and energy, your life will be fuller.
have a great week!
b.