It’s widely accepted that there exists a state of mind that allows you to perform exceptionally. Most people call it ‘the zone’ or ‘flow’. Achieving it helps you to get things done almost effortlessly. It’s fragile though; a single distraction can break it.
The clock is one of those distractions for me:
- 10.00 – Only 10 am?? It feels like I’ve been doing nothing for ages.
- 11.30 – Better not start something new because it’ll be lunch time soon.
- 14.00 - Sheesh this day is never going to end…
- 16.00 – It’s already 4 pm?? I did nothing today and it’s too late to start now.
Timeless
I’m working on a more natural way of getting the most out of my day: it’s an app called Timeless. At its core it gives you a generic sense of what part of the day you’re in: morning, lunch time, noon etc.
Instead of breaking concentration or induce stress it lets you continue working when you’re still in the time range you’re expecting to get stuff done. Then, in a glance, it lets you know that you’ve entered a new part of the day. If it’s between 12pm and 2pm you should probably get lunch.
There’s no notification to ‘get lunch now’, just a hint that when you’re ready you should probably go grab something to eat.
Even when combined with more urgent interruptions, like water breaks, it allows you to comfortably get back to work. Avoiding adding pressure or hesitance because of how much time you’ve have left in the day.
Beta sign-up
I’m getting ready to let others give this a go as well. If you’d like to be invited to try the beta, subscribe to the mailing list. Thanks!
