Dealing with distraction and finding time to focus are hot topics on Product Management Twitter right now.
There’s an assumption that it’s our responsibility to find ways to get our work done amid the firehose of information pointing at us, but is it really?
Should we have to timebox our deep work sessions and switch off notifications so we can focus? Or do the organisations we work for (and the technology companies who provide us with the tools we use) have a duty to help us?
When I was a music journalist, I was at my most prolific when I had a dial-up Internet connection and an old Nokia mobile. I know my circumstances have changed, but I can’t help thinking it was my first iPhone that transformed me from creator to consumer (something I’ve been trying to reverse for years).
I can’t help but thinking, though, if there needs to be a 80-minute long article on how to curb distractions on your mobile phone, then there’s something fundamentally wrong with our relationship with technology.
As product managers, it’s important that we stop and think about how people use the products we build. Instead of trying to hack the psychology of our users with the Hook Model, maybe we should be focusing on how our products can best add value to our customers’ lives without stealing their concentration and focus.
Here’s what my Galaxy S21 looks like, btw 👇