One of my pet peeves is constantly being interrupted. Especially when I’m focused doing my work, or writing in my blog. One of my favorite parts of writing and working is getting in a flow.
Undisturbed. Without any hindrance. So I can get things done one by one by one. High efficiency. Low interruptions. That would be the ideal standard.
But, alas, life never goes as planned. And that’s a good thing I guess. Every day at work, there will always be at least one time when I’m interrupted in the middle of doing something.
Whether it be writing an email. Brainstorming new ideas. Or about to go on a sales call. The interruptions by my well-meaning co-workers would never be ill-intentioned.
They are always trying to express something urgent. Otherwise, interruptions won’t be necessary. But many times when I get inundated with things to do, I often lose focus on the task at hand.
And I end up getting into a multi-tasking state of mind that I find to be inefficient and quite frustrating. I end up writing that email with something stuck in the back of my mind.
And then perhaps my email won’t be done as effectively as I had initially hoped, due to that constant distraction in my mind.
I understand that it’s not the end of the world. Everyone gets distracted here and there. That’s part of life. But, nevertheless, I had my share of troubles handling these distractions.
Sometimes, the annoyance would linger in me for a prolonged period of time. Maybe fifteen minutes. Half an hour. Sometimes perhaps even over an hour. And my mind gets into these inner battles and sometimes end up in a sulking mood.
The easy thing to do in this case would be to blame the interrupter. To ask the pitiful question of “why me?” This trap often just leads to a death spiral of negative thoughts that flow through my mind in a torturous way.
Again, I am over-dramatizing the effects for the sake of literacy interest. And I know that this problem is quite minuscule compared with the problems we have facing the world these days.
But, our minds are our most effective God-given tools. And we need to cherish it, and learn how to appropriately use it and not be used by it.
That’s the problem with many people these days. They get dragged by their minds into petty battles that serve nothing but their own egos. They complain and argue and never learn to appreciate the present moment that they are in. The treasure which is the here and now.
I am no different and sometimes find myself falling into the trap of letting my mind wander into consistent petulant thoughts of victimhood by the interrupter. The mean guy or girl that broke my flow in the heat of it all.
I’ve tried many different tactics to soothe my mind. And they all have varying effects. But, one strategy that has worked for me would be the art of forgiveness.
To simply say to yourself in your head, “I forgive”. I forgive the interrupter for interrupting me when I was in the middle of another project. I forgive him or her for distracting me.
After all, they are simply human. With their own burdens and worries as well. The fact that they came to me signals some faith in their relationship with me.
And I would think to myself the benefits of the interrupter. How they were a chance for me to practice my patience, and my mindfulness.
Everything has a silver-lining, and when I find myself getting constantly interrupted, I practice forgiveness. Forgiveness of the moment. Forgiveness for everything.
And quite often, a feeling of empathy and relaxation flows through me. It’s my way of letting go of the pain and distraction. Of accepting things for what it is. In its natural state of imperfection.
I forgive the interrupter for forcing me to multi-task. I forgive and things will naturally turn out the way they should.
So, this is a practice that has worked for me. And I encourage everyone to try it out. If someone or something has hurt you in any way, I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive.
To understand that life will have its ups and downs. And things do not always turn out the way you initially hope.
It’s still a work in process for me, I have to admit. But, I’m learning slowly day-by-day. So, think about something that has caused you harm, and find it in your heart to truly let things go and forgive.
From there, all you have to do is move on with it.