Conversely, working on a task most people would laud as “productive” can be a horrible distraction if it is not what you committed to doing with your time. Playing video games or watching television can be an act of traction if that’s what you planned to do with your time. Rather, it is forethought that differentiates the two. Whether something is a distraction or traction has little to do with the activity itself. Therefore, we can’t say we got distracted unless we have defined, in advance, what is traction for us at that moment in time. By this definition, we cannot call something a distraction unless we know what it is distracting us from. Understanding the distinction between traction and distraction is critical. But it’s not you or me that’s “broken.” Rather, it’s the to-do list methodology that’s screwed up.

Unfortunately, when we look around and see the endless to-do list apps and productivity “life hacks” telling us to just write things down to get things done, it’s no wonder we think we are the problem. I started telling myself I was “bad at managing my time” and began acting accordingly. This happened to me: I allowed myself to believe I was the kind of person who was “easily distracted,” and I therefore became increasingly distractible. We stop asking whether our time management system is no good and start to believe, “Maybe I am no good.” “I must have a short attention span.”įaced with the constant dissonance between what we’ve promised to do and what we actually accomplish, we begin to see ourselves as the problem. We repeat this cycle until eventually, and subconsciously, the narrative begins to change from what we do to who we are. “I’ll finish it tomorrow,” we tell ourselves. Day after day, week after week, year after year, the fact that we don’t do as we say takes a toll.Įventually, we begrudgingly accept not following through. Having a constant reminder that you didn’t do what you said you’d do cements a self-stereotype. What kind of identity does an ever-incomplete to-do list reinforce? Though there haven’t been direct studies, one can infer from existing research that it isn’t a positive one.

Calendar + todolist app