Using the”Task Zero” approach

“Jonathan Frakes Asks You Things” Voice:

• Do you ever find yourself in a room and wonder what you’re doing there?
• Or set about a to-do list, but get quickly distracted by side-quests?
• Finally get through to a person in a call center, they ask how they can help, and your mind goes blank?
• Go to the supermarket and come out with six things, none of which were the one you came for?

This is a “working memory” thing and you’re not alone. There’s a trick that can help keep you on track more often than not:

Don’t try to overburden your working memory. It is very limited (this goes for everyone to a greater or lesser degree). Instead, hold only two tasks at once:

• Task zero (what you are doing right now)
• Task one (your next task)

When you’ve completed task zero, task one becomes the new task zero, and you can populate a new task one from your to-do list.

This way, you will always know what you’re doing right now, and what you’re doing next, and your focus will be so intent on task zero, that you will not get sidetracked by task seventeen!

Happy focusing