What if I told you that by investing 1.2% of your week in a specific activity you could get a boost of creativity and insight that would help carry you throughout your entire week. You’d probably be at least a little curious.
But if I told you that you needed a 90-minute block of uninterrupted time, then you’d probably say that’s impossible given your schedule, the demands on your life, kids, your boss, your deadlines, commute, etc.
OK, now check how many hours you spent on your phone last week. I’m guessing we can find a little time for this experiment.
Strange how a contiguous 90-minute block of time feels impossible to find, but 1.2% is such a small number! This is a sign that your schedule is seriously fragmented and you should reconsider how your time is being managed (or not managed).
Note: For you sceptics out there, 1.5 hours is about 2.4% of your discretionary time after you remove 8 hours of sleep a night (ha!) and 50 hours for work (no ha! about that part). 2.4% is still a small sliver of anything.
So start small. Here’s the plan: Have a weekly reading time.
Here’s how you do it:
-
Schedule a 90-minute block of time for later this week. This is a meeting. Treat it like any other meeting in your calendar.
-
Put your phone on airplane mode (or just do-not-disturb if airplane mode makes you too nervous) during this time.
-
Sit down in a coffee shop, your living room, the foyer of a hotel, a park, or a log in the forest – really anyplace where you’re not going to be interrupted or bothered – someplace relaxing that you enjoy – doing this on the subway doesn’t count.
-
Read something you want to read.
-
Drink some coffee / tea / water, and savor the experience.
-
Think about what you just read.
-
Write down a note or two.
-
Think a bit more about what your wrote.
-
Consider who you want to share your thoughts with.
That’s it. I have started doing this and have absolutely loved it. 90 minutes of guilt free reading and thinking. It’s fantastic. I get more ideas, insights, knowledge and self-awareness during this block of time than nearly any other.
It’s just taking uninterrupted time to read and think. No distractions. No guilt for taking some time for yourself.
Your brain needs this, your soul needs this, your family and co-workers need you to do this, and it’s something that our culture is really bad at. I’m convinced that this is one of the top 5 time ROIs (return on investment) that you can have in your week.
Give it a try and let me know how it goes!
PS: If you’re unconvinced about why you need a 90-minute block of time, learn about the switching penalty we pay by changing our focus continuously – check Cal Newport’s book Deep Work (here).