Eyal: Research shows 90% of distraction is triggered internally, not externally
Nir Eyal · Strategies for becoming less distractible and improving focus | Nir Eyal · Dec 29, 2023 · at 11:23
Nir Eyal discusses the empirical drivers of workplace and personal distraction on Lenny Rachitsky's podcast.
0:00 / 0:29exact quote · 29.2s
▶ Watch the full episode on YouTube → 720p mp4 · rendered on demand · StarZero watermark
“We have external triggers. These are things in our outside environment, the usual suspects, the pings, the dings, the rings, all this stuff in our outside environment, which we tend to blame for distraction. But studies find that's only 10% of the reason we get distracted. 10% of the time it's because of something outside of us. What's the other 90%? Turns out, 90% of the time that we get distracted, it's not because of what's happening outside of us, but that most distraction begins from within.”
quote is from the automated transcript, cleaned for reading: filler sounds and stutters are removed, nothing is rephrased. names can be misheard (the analysis reads context, assessments check outside sources). how →
More from Nir Eyal
Eyal: Technology is not hijacking our brains; we surrender our focus
“The flip that we need to change in people's minds is this ridiculous belief That technology is hijacking our brains. There's nothing we can do about distraction. That our focus is being stolen. It's not being stolen. We're giving it away.”
Eyal: Measuring uninterrupted focus time produces better output than to-do lists
“People who measure themselves the way I espouse of people who say, I'm just going to measure myself based on, did I do what I said I was going to do for as long as I said, I will without distraction, regardless of whether I finished the kicker here is they act…”
Eyal: All human motivation stems from escaping discomfort, not pursuing pleasure
“We know that the only reason we do everything and anything from a neurological perspective Is not about the pursuit of pleasure. It is all about the desire to escape discomfort. Everything you do, even the pursuit of pleasurable sensations, the carrot is the s…”
Eyal: Ego depletion only affects people who believe willpower is limited
“And it turns out that these studies around ego depletion could not replicate. We couldn't find the effect. And so there was one exception to this, and that exception was in a study done by Carol Dweck. She's one of my research heroes. She wrote the book Mindse…”
Eyal: Ask managers to prioritize your calendar instead of saying no
“The worst piece of personal productivity advice is, if you want to be better at time management, you need to learn how to say no. What kind of stupid advice is that? Only a tenured professor who can't get fired would give you that kind of stupid advice. If you…”
Eyal: Writing habits are impossible because writing requires conscious effort
“Like, I hear people say, like, oh, just form a writing habit. I think that's ridiculous. I don't know what they're talking about, right? A habit is defined as a behavior done with little or no conscious thought. I don't know how to write out of habit. Writing …”