Do It Today: Overcome Procrastination, Improve Productivity, and Achieve More Meaningful Things

Doing focused work is HARD. We’re always
distracted.

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And it’s not your fault. Most technology taps into your lizard
brain and locks you in — it turns you into a consumer. So
don’t even think about resisting the internet or technology. I
bet you’ve tried it in the past. “I’m never going to browse
mindlessly for hours.” Yeah, right!
What will work? Recently, 
I wrote about how I beat
procrastination by creating a system
. Well, one of the most
critical parts of that system is this:
DISCONNECT FROM THE INTERNET.
And there’s only one reason to do that: Too much of
anything is a bad thing. Even good things.
Too much exercise? You will get overtrained.
Too much love? You will smother people.
Too much work? You will burn out.
Too much food? You will get fat.
Too much water? You will die.
So why do you consume so much internet? I asked myself
that question 2 years ago. I had no answer. So I thought; I
do everything else in moderation, why not the internet?
Soon I found out that there’s no moderation with internet
usage. It’s like an all-you-can-eat buffet. You’re already full,
but you still keep eating. And after you’ve stuffed yourself,
the regret will eat you up alive.
And that’s the same with internet usage. It’s so tempting
and satisfying, and available EVERYWHERE. So you go all
out with it. YouTube, Whatsapp, Facebook, Snapchat, etc. I’m
all about eliminating distracting stuff. However, I also don’t
want to live my life as a recluse. So I had to find a middle
ground that worked. I’ve found that a simple tweak in my
attitude towards the internet did the trick.
I went from “Always Connected” to “Always
Disconnected.”

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In practice, it works like this:
On my phone, wifi and mobile data are standard off.
I only turn it on when I need it.
On my laptop, I use an app called 
SelfControl
during
the times I work (try 
FocusMe
 for Windows). The
app blocks distracting sites. The advantage is that
my apps like Evernote, DayOne, Office 365 remain
connected so I can save my work in the cloud.
“Always connected,” isn’t a good thing for your focus and
productivity. It’s the same as going to the gym. Or having
dinner. Or having a romantic evening with your partner. You
don’t do those things for 24 hours a day. You do them for
thirty minutes, an hour, or a few hours. Too much of those
things is simply not effective.
Being disconnected from the internet has worked wonders
for me. I don’t feel the urge to check my smartphone, email,
or the news 500 times a day anymore.
And after a while, you feel like you’re not missing out on
anything. That brings a sense of calmness to your life. I also
get more out of my days; I achieved more things than ever,
feel less distracted, and have more time to spend on the
things that make me happy.
At the end of the day, the internet is just a tool. However,
some of us think it’s everything. But I’m pretty confident
that, in years from now, I will not look back and regret that I
didn’t spend enough time on the internet.
Can you imagine? You’re on your deathbed, and you’re
saying this to your family: “I’m glad I watched so many FAIL
compilations on YouTube.” Nope. You’ll probably look back
and reflect on the time you spent with your family or
friends. Or the memories you made when you were
traveling. Or how much you enjoyed your work.

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So cut the crap with the internet. It’s not giving you
anything but frustration. And after reading this article;
disconnect. You will get some withdrawal symptoms like
grabbing your phone 100 times. Or hitting the F key on your
keyboard (for Facebook) all the time. But I’ll promise you
this: Disconnecting will help you DO more. And that’s what
life is about.

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