This article from David Brooks resonated with me, even
though I’m not sure that I quite understand it. Often a compelling writer,
though one whose politics tend to be to the right of mine, Brooks’ concision in
this column is a bit off, making it a little difficult to parse. But the general
topic of distraction and attention drift has been a concern of mine for a long
time.
I'm not going to dredge up the hackneyed theme of
information overload and over-stimulation. Sure, smart phones, Twitter, email,
Facebook and so forth are fiendishly designed to interrupt the continuum of disciplined
and productive thought. The point of the article is to find a way to emerge from the vortex
of distraction.
What Brooks suggests is to somehow revert to childlike obsessions
that enable kids to become lost in an experience. Seems like we adults lack the
patience to become absorbed in any single thing for an extended period. And, having
lost that ability, we end up failing to fully
realize our potential.
I tend to agree with Brooks here. It takes tremendous discipline to stay
focused in a noisy world. What seems to work for me is to clear the room of
distractions. Disconnect from the Internet and, in my case, don't even own a
smart phone. Then find things that are difficult and challenging to do, or at least
impossible to do without sustained mental or physical application.
I may be a lousy guitar player, but I continue to wall myself off and work
on difficult compositions to sharpen the mind--and conquer the fingers. Plus,
for a period of time a few years ago I forced myself to spend 20 unfettered minutes
a day compiling a journal of sorts, which turned into a book. Again, it was the
process and the activity that mattered, not so much the end result. You can
judge for yourself. Rate my book!
People are realizing that getting unmoored in the maelstrom of
distraction can be depressing and unfulfilling. Taking the time and energy to escape
the clutter of the world and focus on pursuits of greater personal meaning
requires a certain commitment, but one I believe is well worth making.
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