I more than anyone knows how easily it can be to get obsessed with work and whenever the laptop is there and you have a solid wi-fi connection there is certainly a sense of making hay whilst the sun is shining. This is good in the respect that you can get more work done, but terrible in the fact that it is just so easy to open up the computer and work, wherever you happen to be. I found that I was doing this way too much and the result of it was that I wasn’t even working efficiently any more. I have decided therefore to switch up my working schedule in order to be efficient, and increase productivity and one of the best ways that I have discovered is to disconnect from the web and work wirelessly, and here is why.
The Problems
I would love to tell you that I spend 6 hours on the computer and get at least 5 and a half hours of work done but the fact of the matter is that I don’t, and that is a problem. The temptation is right there in front of you, to browse social media sites or check out the news, take a look at someone’s photos or get stuck into an investigation session about some random animals. I can be very easily distracted and being so close to the net really doesn’t help. A far better way is to disconnect entirely.
Working
It was so strange when I realized this because my first reaction was no internet=no work, but that just is not the case at all. In fact I believe that over 50% of what I do on the computer can be done without being online and that is really liberating. Even when I am writing a piece and there are bits and pieces which I need to research, I either do it ahead of time whilst I am connected or I will simply make a note of it and then when I connect again I can look it up. This level of dependence which I had on the internet was wholly unnecessary and moving away from the web has been incredibly liberating.
Mental Health
An unexpected benefit of this decision was that I have been more focused and organized than ever before and taking time away from the web for a while has been something that has definitely positively impacted my mental health. I suppose this makes sense that when you are concentrating on one thing you are not entertaining all of the frivolity of the mind, and I have even seen my stress levels reduce as a result of this decision.
It is easy to constantly work but very rarely does that actually mean that you get more done, a far better approach is a concentrated and wireless way of working that will ensure that you are able to reach your goals and get things done in a timely manner.
