Finding Flow: Escaping Digital Distractions Through Deep Work and Slow Living

Johann Hari says in Stolen Focus that rats and pigeons can be manipulated as we want. Just give them food whenever they do what you want them to. And shortly after, they will repeat that over and over again.

This made me think. In times when Instagram and other apps give us likes, hearts, and views on things we post, how much does big tech influence our behavior?

Aren’t they the same as the researcher, feeding us with dopamine to tell us to do what they want? Are they doing the same as the researcher who feeds the rats or pigeons?

This question, and recent improvements and tinkering with my flow as I started working for myself, made me ask how we can control the addiction and the influence and find a better way to slow living.

The Artist’s Way

Johann continues that people who don’t follow the above dopamine flow are artists and painters.

Instead of sharing or selling them immediately and getting rewarded, they draw the next one. The drawing, the way to the end, is the reward, not the likes or selling the art. After hundreds of interviews, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi said all artists mentioned something like a Flow State. It’s magical that they just tried to be there.

This is also what I find most rewarding and experienced as an author: writing in the flow state, as I’m writing these words right now when I am merely in control, but the words flow out of my fingers. I guide them, but I do not write or choose the words.

This flow and the outcome of what the article looks like after are just magical.

Environments Matter

I have rediscovered the effects of the environment lately when working for myself when I had to find productivity in my everyday work without a boss telling me what to do. At home, I wasn’t always focused enough. I had all the distractions. Going to the library usually produces my best work. Focused without distractions. But always going there isn’t an option, sometimes it’s closed, or too inconvenient. Another great way to write and be creative is to use coffee shops, specifically moving to the next every 1.5 to 2.5 hours. It’s the sweet spot for me between being creative and getting distracted. And interestingly enough, the same for CGP Grey in his Redundant Office podcast, he said the same.

Music, especially non-vocal music on repeat or dedicated Music that keeps you focused, helps you stay in the flow longer. It’s another way of signaling an environment to the brain, like “Now is work time”. I also use a dedicated browser; for example, I use Zen browser for work and Brave for everything else. Zen, the work browser, has no extensions. No password manager to automatically log in and no history to quickly choose the latest website distraction. These little obstacles make it harder to distract, whereas my Brave has all the convenience at one tab away.

Another huge benefit of my writing work is that all my files are offline in my Obsidian Vault. No need to go online or log in to a web app to get going. It’s just there to start writing, brainstorming, and getting into the flow. Another way to stay in the flow is to use Markdown files and Vim motions. The Markdown files are simple text files that can be easily accessed and moved around. The key here is that the text’s formatting allows me to move and restructure entire chapters or ideas without friction. Adding the vim motions, I can do everything in the comfort of my keyboard. As I use them daily, they are muscle memory, and I can write at the speed of thought.

Breaks

One crucial ingredient that is mostly overlooked is breaks. Small drinking breaks and walking around as observed with the 1.5-2.5h sweet spot. But much more, long periods off, vacations where you don’t think of work or related. Your brain has time to wander. Good sleep to a certain extent is also a form of break. The more we learn about sleep (see Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker), the more prevalent it is how important it is. I also notice to myself. If I sleep, the chances of being productive in the morning, achieving my goals early, and getting a sense of calm throughout the rest of my day are much higher. As we process primarily during sleep, especially with the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep that we usually get only after sleeping for 7-8 hours, is where the brain is cleansing itself, and making it ready for the next day.

I am on vacation writing this article, and I haven’t written for a couple of days. I am enjoying time on vacation, nature, and with family, letting my brain drift and follow its thoughts. These ideas, connections, and words basically flow themselves, as my brain is super relaxed. While being offline and taking a break, the brain makes sense of things in the subconscious.

Mini Retirements

Another way of taking breaks is small mini-retirements. I explored these in my Pathless Path. These are like Sabbaticals. I did many of these early in my life, and they heavily influenced who I am today and how my life unfolded.

Slowing down, Slow Living

Slowing down, and just slow living, is another essential concept. Slowing down, being more present. As Cal Newport says in his book Slow Productivity, his main points are:

1. Do fewer things.
2. Work at a natural pace.
3. Obsess over quality.

If we apply this to life, we get a Deeper Life. One that is more fulfilled and present. It is about finding the balance between the important and the urgent.

Turning off the phone, without the pressure or the urge to check if someone has messaged you, if you got a like on social media, your brain starts wondering. You start getting ideas and thoughts to ponder. But these don’t start immediately. If you have been distracted, living a fast life, are constantly on the go, and have no time to think about anything, without defined principles to work towards, without clarity, your brain can’t just switch, and be deeply focused. But practicing it, like meditation or yoga, is undoubtedly worth it.

Shallow vs. Deep Happiness

These can also be summarized into what I call shallow happiness versus deep happiness. Buying something new, eating fast food, having another coffee, or watching a YouTube video all give us pleasure, but only in the short term. Writing an article or learning something hard, like coding or vim motions, is initially hard. But the reward is long-term. We get deep satisfaction from being in the flow and perfecting something we have learned and perfected over a long time.

Maybe that’s the secret of a Deep Life? Not reading news, journaling, praying, meditating, or following a Stoic practice. Reading books is a similar thing; it’s hard to listen to or read an entire book, but when we do, especially if we learn something new, without distractions, in a format the author spent a year or more to curate and put into its format, is so calming and almost peaceful. In fact, reading a book is known to be the biggest and most common version of flow.

There’s much more to dig into, which I might in another article about “Why we are here on earth?”. This article has been cooking over many months and years already. It will go much deeper and more philosophical about why we even do what we do. It will be connected and even strengthen the flow more if we have clear principles, a clear path, and a passion for why we do something.

But now, instead, I want to focus on how to get into a flow state or how to unblock us when we feel stressed and not in the mood to do the Deep Work. If we easily get distracted.

These are all based on personal experience and books I read. They don’t always work, but one variation usually does the trick by iterating on them.

Getting Back to Focus

These are more pointers related to this article’s topic, thoughts, or steps I followed, some of which are already on my Second Brain.

How to Get Focused

Walk every day; nature is tiding our thoughts, just like naps and sleep. Walking, or going outside, is suitable for mental, spiritual, and physical health. When I start walking, the ideas flow, my brain calms down, and I slowly begin to think and process anything I am pondering. It’s best when done in nature. Nature in itself is a remedy for calming down. It has helped all the big thinkers before our time and will help many after ours.

Like our inner monkeys or daemons, they don’t want us to go out of bed or get fresh air. Walking frees us from them—the opposite of what social media or smartphones do.

Strategies to Unblock

Try to change the medium. If writing on a computer does not work, try pen or paper. Or try talking. As Jonny Miller said:

There is no talking block, only writer's block.

Interestingly, if we change the medium, we can unblock it:

• Take a walk in nature.
• Change environment, physically as well as digitally:
  • Physical: Go to another room, a coffee shop, or what works best for me, Libraries.
  • Digital: Also, changing your computer environment, e.g., changing from dark to light mode or changing the theme, can give you a sense of change and fresh energy.
• Listen to the same playlist repeatedly, and use Music that keeps you focused.
• Timebox yourself, also called Pomodoro Technique. It has the same effect and works in the train with only the battery. The urge to finish before you run out of battery will give you focus and added clarity.
• Change between Text and Visual: I use a lot of MindMap on paper, but Obsidian Canvas, Draw with ExaliDraw, and others work as well.
• Go forth and back the pendulum with Creativity vs Productivity.
• Try to get into the same habit when working (same place, same music, etc.). Your brain will know it needs to write before you even start.
  • Check Spaceship You by CGP Grey, showcasing how designated space helped during the pandemic, but also for clarity.
  • The Pre–Game Routine by James Clear can help as well.
• Journaling for a while.

How I get into Deep Work — Flow

The above strategies to unblock are also related to Deep Work and how I get into deep work:

1. Journal before bed what 1-2 tasks you must/want to achieve tomorrow.
2. Go to bed early (you usually don’t achieve much at night).
3. Have a good sleep.
4. Get up before the kids :) (don’t turn on the phone).
5. Make your bed.
6. Later, take a walk in nature.
7. Change environment/room if stuck.

Others:

• Clear some time in your calendar.
• Get rid of distractions: Turn off notifications, close Slack, and put your phone out of reach. 
• Clear your space and your mind. Put on concentration music, and get rid of any clutter around. 
• Get to work on a specific task, taking periodic short breaks.
• Deeper: Acknowledge your fears, write from authenticity and a place of truth.
  • Truth is stored in our body (not in our mind)
  • Emotions are like a GPS, help us to find truth and navigate around
• Two Minutes Rules to do it for at least two minutes
• Meditation or doing nothing for 5 minutes

Also, like creative block, add boundaries and constraints like no internet, use another browser for searching the web, and suddenly ideas flow. Unlimited freedom is super-blocking, especially for creativity. Great read on the topic: If You Have Writer’s Block, Maybe You Should Stop Lying.

Turn Off, Shut Down, and Re-Energize for a Happy Life

Something that is easy to say but hard to do. I enjoy walks in nature or a long bicycle ride. It does not matter what you do, but that you do something without distraction. I was listening to books on the walks for a long time, but this always felt like more work. Sure, if you have a great book, listening can be fun too, but I did my best to calm down when going without any decision—just me and nature.

From the book “The Well-Lived Life: A 102-Year-Old Doctor’s Six Secrets to Health and Happiness at Every Age”, a comment by Liong on Goodreads says the six secrets may help us live a long, happy, and healthy life:

1. Let go of the past (Forget the past regrets and anger).
2. Live in the present moment. (Live now; don’t stay in your history and worry about your future).
3. Connect with nature. (Read and find out yourself).
4. Eat a healthy diet. (Choose and be aware of what you eat daily).
5. Get regular exercise. (Try exercise every day).
6. Find your purpose. (Having a purpose is vital to living longer).

Be grateful now. Help others. Have fun—also, more on my note on What Makes a Happy Life.

Nature: How It Flourishes Creativity

Take inspiration from nature. Nature is so powerful.

For example, watching a tree through the four seasons: In summer, it is green with many leaves; in autumn, it loses them all; in winter, it looks dead. But instead, it builds and prepares its strength for the spring. Where the colorful flowers sprout, it’s calming and inspiring.

Take gardening; it takes so much patience to grow those three. It puts time into different perspectives. Threes outlive houses and plants are harvested over many years. If you sell a home, things might have been there long before the house.

I like to get inspiration from nature. I think of my creative process as gardening. Things inside us build up slowly, but great things will come out with constant nurturing: Art, a thought, an idea, anything. It doesn’t matter which day. It’s seasonal, similar to creativity; we can’t be creative all year.

I hope any of these helped you; more so, it helped me to clarify focus in connection with the ever-growing (primarily digital) distractions to find a better life worth living—A slower and deeper life could be possible.

Further Reads

Books and related reads I recommend that gave me lots of inspiration:

• Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention by Johann Hari: The book currently listening that inspires the initial thought.
• Steal like an artist Trilogy by Austin Kleon: Gave me the courage to share my work. Keep going with the flow and focus as an artist.
• Four Thousand Weeks, Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman.
• Related articles of mine:
  • Personal Knowledge Management Workflow for a Deeper Life — as a Computer Scientist
  • My Obsidian Note-Taking Workflow
  • My Vim-Verse: The Backbone of My Workflow
• Related Notes:
  • Social Media Addiction: Convert Smartphone to Dumb Phone
  • Productive Procrastination
  • Daydream
  • The Art and Joy of Craftsmanship