Ask HN: How to Stay Focused at Work?

20 points by theduemmer 4 years ago | 20 comments

Hi everyone,

For context, I work as a design engineer on what I would normally consider interesting projects. Lately I’ve been having an increasingly difficult time focusing while at work and it’s been negatively affecting my performance. Luckily nobody has said anything yet but I fear that they will if I keep moving down this path. Typically I’ll come into work and immediately find myself wandering off task one way or another, then maybe do some work, then wander off again. Even with me blocking distracting sites like Reddit, I’ll end up on a Wikipedia or google maps tangent or something to distract myself. All told I normally only get a couple hours of real work done in a day. This week was especially bad with me doing maybe 5 hours of functional work in total, if that. I even spent time putting together a detailed to-do list for my current project with tasks broken into small items but that hasn’t helped. I also try to space exercise before, during and after the workday (but admittedly I don’t always do it).

Even though I can WFH whenever I want, I don’t work from home unless I have a good reason because if the office is bad for focus, my home is worse. To be fair, I live in a small apartment without a dedicated office space. I’ve bounced back and forth on why I am this way, whether it is too much freedom (very few real deadlines), my lack of confidence in the direction of the company, frustration when dealing with people from another office, burnout, the work just being too boring for me, or the fact that there are not many people currently at the office, and none with desks in my vicinity.

All that being said, today I was at my girlfriend’s apartment while she studied for her finals, and I figured I’d try to catch up on work while there. Surprisingly, I was effortlessly able to start working, even while still lying in bed! Additionally, I didn’t “feel” like the work was bullshit either, even though this past week I did feel that way. It makes me wonder if my problem stems from my mind not being in work mode while I am at work. How do you all keep your minds in a working mode, whether at home or at the office? Thanks in advance!

bestcoder69 4 years ago |

Yeah I had this problem my entire life until about age 30 when I got prescribed Adderall and, blam, my problem was fixed almost instantly.

So... whoops, I guess my teachers when I was young were right about the possible ADHD, and it wasn't really a case of "they're just trying to pill up all the kids!!!111!".

sureglymop 4 years ago | |

I wish I could say the same. I have been diagnosed with ADHD as a young child and what's described in the post is normal to me. Now I have tried many medications and stimulants and luckily they do work! The problem I have is the side effects. They give me strong and I mean super strong anxiety which negatively affects my life and social life in every way. From my experience with asking other people this seems to be extremely rare and they don't have the same problems with the medication. I really wish I lived a few years into the future where maybe a medication that is suitable for me exists :(

booboofixer 4 years ago | |

Is there a test that was done for ADHD? Considering taking Adderall improves everyone's performance at work/academics, it's really up to the test to correctly diagnose ADHD and i'm wondering how accurate it is.

Edit: Read another comment in thread and apparently performance doesn't improve for everyone. Anecdotal data suggests a lot of people i know have ADHD?

hotpotamus 4 years ago | | |

Since you're posting here, I'm going to guess you work in software? As a person who has to use software, I'd say it sure seems like it's designed by people with ADHD.

theduemmer 4 years ago | |

I've been wondering whether I have ADHD for a while now. I have not went to a professional to get diagnosed but at a glance it seems like I share many of the same symptoms. I am ASD though, so maybe it plays into that? I've never taken Adderal, I almost want to once just to see the effects.

comprev 4 years ago | |

I was diagnosed age 37. The difference pre/post-medication was so massive I struggle to comprehend how I survived without it. It has also changed my perspective of what I could achieve, both immediately and long-term career wise.

t-3 4 years ago | |

My mom recently figured out that nearly everyone in our family is probably ADHD. I had even seen lists of symptoms before and thought it was pretty funny that I matched almost all of them but somehow never made the connection.

iwixnxnwkd 4 years ago | |

yes taking amphetamines typically makes people more productive

anothernewdude 4 years ago | | |

It doesn't actually. Studies have shown stimulants worsen focus for people without ADHD. With research suggesting that they are better at filling a deficit than enhancing performance.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3489818/

m3ursau1t 4 years ago |

I experimented with various ambient noises (white, brown etc.) or recently 40 Hz tone after hearing it may increase focus on Huberman podcast. I think it improves my ability to focus. One of the reasons may be that you make your brain aware that this is 'work' time since you listen to the sound only when you need to work (or focus in general). But I think I noticed a positive change even on the first occasions.

You may want to try some of this out, and perhaps it will work for you. Good luck!

watercooler_guy 4 years ago |

The part about being able to focus at your girlfriend’s place is interesting, because I experience the same thing. When someone is sitting near me and working at the same time as me, I don’t go on all my usual distraction tangents, I actually get stuff done. I think it’s a subconscious fear of being seen as weird or unproductive by someone I care about, when we’re both supposed to be working. Maybe having a “work chaperone” is the solution for us?

theduemmer 4 years ago | |

I'm curious whether it's this "work chaperone" concept, but I'm not sure. Until recently, I had two other people working in close proximity to me, before they both quit. I definitely got that weird unproductive feeling when I was off-focus, but it was decidedly negative. Think a fear of punishment or embarrassment vs. the positive feeling that I had today. But at the same time, coworkers and SOs are very different in terms of relationship and motivation.

endorphine 4 years ago |

Close your email client and Slack. Then out your mobile phone in Do Not Disturb mode. Biggest productivity hacks for me.

nso95 4 years ago |

Honestly, 2-5 hours of work is pretty good. But if you want to be more focused you can check out Pomodoro and similar timeboxing systems.

theduemmer 4 years ago | |

To clarify, that was 5 hours for this week. So an average of 1 hour a day, which is less good to say the least. But I'll have to check out Pomodoro, thanks!

nso95 4 years ago | | |

I recommend extending the Pomodoro from 25m to 50m or so, better for programming tasks.

ipaddr 4 years ago |

It's hard to get focused. Weed can help or hurt.

It's not how much time you spend it's the ability to deliver on time.

nuclx 4 years ago |

Coffee.

Parker_Powell 4 years ago |

Even if your job requires you to sit at a desk, it can be hard to stay focused. However, it's possible to do so with a little discipline and patience.

When you have a million different distractions around you all day, staying focused at work can be difficult, even for the most dedicated employees. Although it may seem impossible, it's actually quite easy to stay focused if you just put your mind to it. It's all about developing good habits and sticking to them.

First and foremost, set boundaries with your coworkers around when they should disturb you and when they should leave you alone. If you're having trouble focusing on an important project during the day, try getting up and working on it somewhere else—even if that means going home and working in the quiet of your own living room. It might also help to turn off any outside distractions, like social media or streaming services, while you're trying to focus.

Be sure not to overload yourself with work by taking on too many projects at once or by trying to juggle multiple tasks within one day! You'll just end up feeling overwhelmed instead of productive.

Remember: Staying focused takes effort but it's worth every minute when you see how much more efficient your time becomes!