I often hear people talk about how difficult it is to find inspiration, whether this be for writing projects or any other project, but I think the harder task by far is focusing on that inspiration long enough to get even a tiny fraction written.

If my mind had a literal train of thought running through it, I’m afraid the ride might resemble something like this:

I start out as the conductor, planning out details for the next stop, making sure the crew is all in order and keeping the train running like it’s supposed to.

Then I decide to bail. For no apparent reason, at least that I can remember, I’ve jumped off the caboose and I stand waving goodbye to my conductorless train of thought.

Realizing what I’ve just done, but still not remembering why I did it, I begin sprinting down the tracks in a hopeless attempt to save my valuable locomotive.

And then, just when it looks like I won’t find my train again, things change again and it’s like those dreams in which everything keeps switching and it makes absolutely zero sense whatsoever. Now, rather than driving the train or attempting to find it, I’m robbing it. Why? I don’t know. Maybe because I’ve completely forgotten about any previous responsibilities to this locomotive and I’ve decided that there couldn’t possibly be anything more fun than robbing a train.

Before finishing my task of robbing the train, I get distracted (surprise surprise) by the fact that it is a train without a driver. Remembering suddenly that it was my responsibility to keep the train on track, and feeling ashamed that I abandoned it for so long, I once again take over as conductor. I try my best to remember where I was taking my train of thought and search for a way to get it back where it’s supposed to be.
But, as you can imagine, before my train completes its journey, I, the conductor, notice something off in the distance that peaks my interest. I take my train for a little off-roading and forget entirely about my original intent with the train of thought.

(If you miraculously lasted through that whole thing, I applaud you)

Although I’m clearly not an expert at keeping my train of thought on its tracks, I’ve learned a few tricks for focusing and keeping/finding my motivation again. I decided to share a few with you incase you share my distracted locomotive troubles. The ones I’ve listed are specific tips that I’ve found help me particularly when working on a writing project, but they are also helpful for so many other aspects of life.

Limit distractions

Now, I’ve found that this one is pretty impossible for me to do completely. I set aside what I think are my distractions but then find that distractions are everywhere. But I do think it is important if I’m trying to get a bunch done to put my phone in another room, or even just in a drawer out of sight. Just having my phone, or whatever seems to be my main distraction, out of sight really helps me to keep my concentration.

Have handwork at the ready

Lots of times I’ll be going along writing and suddenly lose my train of thought or get stuck on where to go next. It’s really easy when this happens to hop on Pinterest, my email, or even a book. Especially when I’m writing on my computer it’s so easy to get sucked into something else as soon as I pause to think for a minute. A good solution to this: I don’t allow myself to immediately switch over to another tab on the computer, and instead I work on a project with my hands. Something like crocheting, doodling, drawing, or whittling. This lets me continue working on a project, but one that doesn’t take too much brain power, and I can keep busy while still thinking about my writing project.

Set time limits

There are times when I’m working on a project and legitimately do need to look something up. When I need this constructive distraction, I’ve found that it helps me to set a timer for a reasonable amount of time and when it beeps I must go back to my project.

Music

Music actually helps me focus lots of times. If I can find minutes of quiet I savor them, but those moments are very rare. So, by turning on music, I can focus a little better because it feels like focused noise. Drowning out outside noise with focused noise allows me to focus better because I’m not distracted by interesting conversations or other noises. It’s like exercising; music gets me in the zone and I tend to work harder when I’m working to the pace of a good beat.

 

 

 

Happy reading and writing!