According to research humans get distracted 47% of the time!
So our mind wanders nigh on half of the time we spend doing anything or listening to anyone. And this was all before you introduce smart phones or the internet into the mix. The last few weeks I have had almost a constant furrow in my brow from the unimaginable amount of work I have on, constantly juggling 20 odd projects, all with competing deadlines and priorities. However, upon reflection this is probably only 1 more than the usual 19 projects I have to contend with, so why have I felt as if my brain is frazzled on an evening.
One of the reasons is that I had a wonderful holiday with my five year old in Portugal where I had to switch off and reconnect with my inneryouth. Upon getting back after this mini break I got withdrawal symptoms of not spending time with him as he went off to Liverpool to spend a week with my outlaws.
However, one afternoon I returned home early, after wasting a few hours waiting for a BT Engineer not to arrive, the intercom rang. Now it is quite unusual for me to be at home during the day or for someone to ring the buzzer unannounced. I answered and this young plucky voice announced he was Steven and he was an ex-offender on a sales course and was selling some items.
I opened the gate and this tall young scruffy looking boy came up the path. Inviting him in, he seemed slightly unsure, I gave him a drink whilst I listened to his story. He told me he had been sentenced to 3 years for hitting his sister’s abusive boyfriend and had been recently released after 18 months. He enjoyed boxing but his offending meant he was precluded and now wanted to join the Army.
Steven was genuinely sorry for committing the offence and didn’t really have an excuse for getting into trouble as both of his parents were well to do with respectable positions. In fact his father had been in the Army. We looked through Steven’s items and I bought 3 items for far more than I could pick them up at the pound shop, although by doing so he got a free driving lesson. I agreed to connect him with the Army and encouraged him to remain focused, disciplined, and concentrate on the bigger picture. He now had a plan and was disciplined on achieving it regardless of the steps involved in doing so.
Now this isn’t a story of a good deed on my part, but more that we can get distracted with focusing on the tasks in hand rather than the impact they have or our longer term ambitions. The vast majority of time I do what I enjoy, and enjoy what I do and I have a routine. Meeting Steven helped me re-establish my connection with the impact of my projects, rather than being caught up in movement as opposed to momentum.
By focusing on the positives in life and realising progress the Brian Drain that I felt had turned into a Brain Gain making me feel better already. I now need to spend the weekend with the family to get my mojo back. We have agreed to disconnect from our phones. Now where was I before I got distracted and started writing this blog.
Ammar Mirza CBE is the founder and chairman of Asian Business Connexions, Board member of North East LEP and holds various other positions across the private, public and third sectors.
