It’s not easy to concentrate in a world full of entertainment and where social networks are a great source of distraction … Anything can distract us from our work and make us lose all attention. How can you work efficiently and stay focused in order to increase your productivity? The American professor Cal Newport has reflected at length on this subject. It was then that he developed a new concept: deep work. Discover this original way of optimizing your work through this article.
Work in Depth with Deep Work
If anything distracts you when you are at work, deep work may be the method that will convince you and allow you to solve your concentration problems. Let yourself be seduced by this new concept and also try the experience! After 10 years of research, Cal Newport published the book Deep work: Rediscovering Concentration in a World of Distractions in 2017. He explains in particular how to stay focused and achieve his goals, in order to produce quality work. The term deep work is defined as a state of optimal concentration, achieved when the individual is not subjected to any distraction.
Efforts to achieve this attitude improve this skill of focusing entirely and exclusively on a task, but it is difficult to maintain and replicate. Because concentration requires a real effort from the brain, both psychological and physical, in order to bring together all of its intellectual or emotional forces and to focus them on a particular object. To deep work is opposed the shallow work. This term refers to logistical tasks, which are not at all cognitively demanding and often performed while distracted. The efforts made for these tasks consume little energy and are of little use. We therefore consider that shallow work is lost working time.
There are 4 great ways to experience deep work. Each of them requires downtime during which you can reflect and regain energy. The monastic approach is to shut yourself off completely from all outside distractions, until you reach your goal. It is only after completing the planned task that the work is stopped. The bimodal approach also gives priority to deep work. It is a question of defining a block of 4 to 6 hours of work per day. However, apart from this intense phase during which you only dedicate yourself to your work, you can go about your business freely. The rhythmic approach allows you to reduce your work into blocks of time like the previous approach, and requires the use of a calendar to track your progress and organize yourself efficiently. Finally, the fourth approach is called journalistic. It is perfect if you have long, busy days, as you devote your free time to in-depth work.
The many advantages in terms of productivity, turnover, business and free time
Deep work is of course an excellent working method to increase your productivity. Indeed, by concentrating more and by providing a better job in a given and limited time, the production will be much better than before. And if the production is on the one hand of a higher quality than normal, we can also increase its output. Everything therefore suggests that deep work is beneficial, and this on various points such as the quality of the work provided and the remarkable productivity.
While the quality of work and productivity both tend to improve through deep work, the revenue earned will also increase as a result. Deep work represents a real advantage in terms of business since it allows, in the long run, to work less to earn more. Because by dint of practicing this method, the employee saves precious time and provides more diligent work. Thanks to the moments of free time that it plans, deep work also allows you to recover between periods dedicated to work.
Copywriting and Deep Work?
Copywriting is an activity that requires great concentration. While the editor must of course provide texts with impeccable spelling, he must also ensure that the information is correct and that his client’s instructions are met. This is why applying deep work to copywriting can really be beneficial in every way. No one can do deep work for a full day. It is about adapting your schedule to your own capacity for in- depth work. You have to know how to adapt according to your personal limits.
How to apply deep work to copywriting? First of all, choose a best copywriting course as a training material, now you must first define a precise work schedule. It may also be necessary to determine a specific location to work and thus put oneself in good conditions. Create an area where you can afford to focus. Then, log out of social networks. Putting your laptop on silent and in a closet is of course essential if you want to be sure not to be distracted. Decide how long you are going to work for and what your goals are. If your concentration is very limited at first, you can work for a short time and schedule several sessions a day so you don’t get overworked. Determine the working methods that you are going to need and the energy that they will require of you. Above all, remember to set up some downtime and agree to rest.
When you work, only focus on one thing at a time! Give priority to the most important tasks. Focus your full attention on the present moment and don’t think about previous or next tasks. Do not rush. Taking your time and applying yourself will be beneficial, because it is the quality that matters more than the quantity.
Finally, in the evening, it is strongly recommended to disconnect, stop all activity and especially cut off from social networks, which will allow you to fully regenerate your work potential. Learn to ignore social media and refocus on yourself. Instead of navigating between Facebook and Instagram, reading a book, for example, can allow you to have fun while keeping your concentration working.