Friday, June 3, 2011

Heller on How To Guard Against Online Distractions

Joseph Finder, author of Buried Secrets, talks about tools he uses to stay productive in an age of endless diversion. No bonus points for guessing that more than one is analog:



(Hat Tip: Brandywine Books)

2 comments:

Tony said...

Ugh, I understand the point about cutting yourself away from the distraction, but research has shown that simple, realistic goal-setting measures can accomplish so much more than trying to guard yourself from things like facebook and youtube videos. To each their own, I suppose, but I feel that people who are prone to distraction can find one anywhere. The internet is just a convenient excuse for them and an equally convenient target for Luddites who felt that writing was more "pure" when it was done primarily by hand or on a typewriter.

Here, this is what I mean: http://www.bakadesuyo.com/what-5-things-help-you-achieve-your-goals-wha

Loren Eaton said...

Tony,

That's a useful list, and I think a similar concept regarding concrete goals is implicit in Heller's one-hour, unplugged writing period. Did you finish the video? Heller doesn't advocate that writers go entirely analog -- and neither would I. It's useful for short periods, but not as a way of life.