Things feel heavy right now—and if you’re an aspiring author struggling to focus, you’re not alone. In today’s episode, I get real about my own experience navigating the weight of the world while trying to write. I offer some practical habits to help you reclaim your attention and protect your creative energy—from limiting news intake to replacing scrolling with reading, from getting enough sleep to starting your day with morning meditation and changing your work environment. These are a few of the strategies I use to stay focused, creative, and grounded.
If you’re a writer or author struggling to find deep focus in a noisy world, this episode will give you simple, actionable shifts you can start today.
Book recommendations:
- Cloud Cuckoo Land: A Novel, by Anthony Doerr
- The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, by V. E. Schwab
- The Bean Trees: A Novel, by Barbara Kingsolver
Follow me on:
- Instagram @stacyennis
- Facebook @stacyenniscreative
- YouTube @stacyennisauthor
To submit a question, email hello@stacyennis.com or visit stacyennis.com/contact and fill out the form on the page.
How to protect your focus in a distracted world | Episode 245 Transcript
These transcripts were generated by robots, not writers.
Stacy: I don’t know about you, but I feel like things are kind of heavy right now. There’s a lot going on in the world and there has been for some time. And I’m having so many conversations with aspiring authors who are having a hard time focusing. I get this. I can understand from the deluge of news that we get to the just distraction of everyday life, of the devices that rob us of our lives, the overwhelm of just all of it. It feels heavy, right? It feels like a lot. I get that. I have been working through this myself too. I’m working on a book right now. And I had a period of time a few weeks ago where it was like my head felt heavy. Like, I don’t know how to explain it except for that it just felt like my.
Stacy: My head, which normally feels sharp and light, it just felt full and slow and heavy. And I started to look around at my life and I wondered what it could because I was getting sleep, like adequate, probably seven to eight hours a night. I probably need eight to nine, but I was getting seven to eight. I was eating great. I have a very good diet. I was exercising. What could it be? I don’t drink alcohol. What could it be? And I, when I really honestly looked at my. My life, a couple of things. One, I had let my scrolling habits get beyond where I like them to be. I had been listening to the news a lot more and I noticed that a lot of conversations about just the world in general had been kind of negative. That’s not how I normally roll, folks.
Stacy: I am a positive person. I intentionally surround myself with positive people. I don’t gossip. I’m not a gossip person. I don’t like any of that. I don’t want that in my life. I try to always be kind. I try to fill my head with positive things. But the fact is I just let it slip for a little bit. Too much news, too much negativity. And I was really feeling it. And so a couple things that I’ve been doing and that I’ve been coaching my authors on because I’ve been hearing the same things from them. I’m hearing the same struggles. I sit down to write, my brain feels foggy. I’m having a hard time being creative. They’re overwhelmed. And so what I would encourage you to do is to really go on a quest to regain your focus.
Stacy: And there are a few things that I’ve been doing that I know will help you, that have helped my clients. And I’d love to also hear Any additional tips you have so you can leave a comment on this episode if you are listening to this in a podcast player or on YouTube, if you’re watching it on YouTube
Stacy: First off, limiting my news. I was shocked and not shocked to learn that most neuroscientists don’t read, watch or listen to the news. I mean, it makes sense, right? You, if you think about it, what you put in creates your reality. The world around us doesn’t really exist. And I know that sounds probably weird to say, but just hear me out. It exists, but it only exists through the reality that we create. And so if I am taking in negativity and I see the world as profoundly negative, my world will be negative. But if I’m taking in positivity and I see the world as positive, my world will be positive. And for that reason, reality. There is no reality. The reality is only my reality and your reality. Neuroscientists understand this and that’s why generally they don’t watch or listen to the news. It’s just a.
Stacy: A known thing in their field because they know how harmful it can be. Now, a lot of what I hear when I suggest this to clients or to creatives that are trying to make space for creative work is, well, isn’t it my responsibility to be clicked in? And it’s a tough one because, yes, on the one hand, absolutely, as humans, we should care about what’s happening to other humans. Absolutely. On the other hand, our brains were never, ever designed to be able to take in the entire world’s pain and suffering. And there is little good it does to you and to the world actually for you to be consumed in that suffering and for that to be harming you in your life.
Stacy: And so there is a balance between being aware and knowing what’s going on and stewing in it, seeping in it, letting it destroy you in some ways. So what I do, and you may have different political persuasions, but I listen to the New York Times Headlines podcast and it’s great because it’s just like, boom, boom. Here’s what’s going on. Here’s what you need to know, it’s usually about eight minutes. I don’t listen every day. Sometimes I just simply read the headlines title and the description and that’s all I can take that day. And then a few times a week, I will listen to the headlines podcast and I’ll get what I need. And then my husband just fills me in or friends on other things that I really need to know or that’s really important going on.
Stacy: And then I will go and I’ll look that up if I want more information or I want to learn. And that’s been really important for me in taking back my focus. The other thing that I’ve been doing to take back my focus is making sure I’m reading a good book. Now this, you know, may be a little subjective, but I assume maybe if you’re listening to my podcast or watching my YouTube channel, maybe you like books, too. One thing that is constantly true in my life is that if I’m reading a good book, I am not scrolling social media. So my new goal is that when I finish one good book, I start another good book. As long as I have a good book rolling, I’m usually good with my attention.
Stacy: And rather than looking at my phone before bed, which I was doing, I am reading my Kindle. And it’s funny, I. I don’t fall asleep scrolling my phone, but I can fall asleep reading my Kindle, which is great because then I don’t tend to stay up too late. So that’s been a really nice solve for me. I love my Kindle Unlimited, but you can also sign in with your library and rent or rent check out books for free. So highly recommend keeping a good book in your life at all times. I just read a couple of really good books. One was Cloud. What is it called? Cloud Cuckoo Town, I think Cloud Cuckoo Land. Cloud Cuckoo Land. Such a good book. And I also finished the Bean Tree, which was very different than that one, but I really enjoyed.
Stacy: And then there was another one. It was something the invisible, something of Anna. I’ll try to get all of those in the show notes for you if you want. 3. They’re very different, like wildly different books, but I enjoyed all of them. So I’ll link that. I’ll link them for you if you want to find some good reads. I’m enjoying my current read too, but I’ll maybe I’ll tell you about it when I’m done to make sure I want to recommend it. So have a good book in your life. Like that is a way to take back Your focus. It is such a powerful thing to have something interesting, engaging, stimulating to keep you clicked in, to keep you entertained. So you’re not going to Netflix or your phone. You have been thinking about writing a book for a while now, maybe even years.
Stacy: The idea is there, the intention is there, but somehow the book just isn’t getting written. That’s where Idea to Draft comes in. Idea to Draft is a small group coaching program led by me, Stacy Ennis to help you create a structured, well positioned draft that not only will be a great book, but will also be positioned to help you make the impact you are meant make on the world. The best part is that you won’t be doing it alone. You’ll be journeying alongside an incredible group of other driven future authors and have expert guidance from somebody who has contributed to more than a hundred books throughout 16 years in publishing. If you decide that this is the year you are finally going to write your book, head to staceyans.comideatodraft to grab your spot in the program.
Stacy: The other thing that I’ve been doing to take back my focus is integrating some visualization or meditation into my morning. I’m not perfect about this. I don’t do this seven days a week, but I would say probably like four to five days a week. And I’ve been using a new app that I’m really enjoying called Activations. It’s maybe more for you ladies, it’s more of a female oriented app, which I’ve actually been really enjoying that aspect of it because they have different challenges in it, like lucky girl challenges, things like that are really for women, for females. So that’s fun because, you know, not a lot of things are necessarily tailored for us as women. And I like it because it has different. You can select different parts of your life and pick an activation or meditation essentially for something active.
Stacy: So if you’re on a walk, you’re getting ready in the morning, you’re getting ready for bed, there’s a bunch of different, more active activations meditations in that app and I’ve enjoyed it’s. It’s 30 bucks a month, so it’s not like a cheap app. But for me it’s worth it to not have to go look for meditation on YouTube. Find one on my podcast app. It’s right there. I can select different challenges and I can do a daily, have a daily one fed to me. And I’ve been really enjoying it. And the other thing that I’ve been doing with that is after I Do my activation in the morning, then I’ll write a little bit about it. And usually I’ll write some affirmations and then I’ll write three things I’m grateful for.
Stacy: This is not something I’ve really ever done in my life consistently, but I recognize that I really needed something like this. I needed to take back my positivity, my gratitude, my joy, my focus. And it has really made a big difference. So maybe something like that could work for you, too. It doesn’t have to be a paid app. It could be a podcast playlist. It could simply be journaling. But something like that could be a really important part of helping you take back your focus, too. And the last thing that I’ve been doing might seem a little counterintuitive because, you know, if you’re feeling overwhelmed and you’re feeling like you’re struggling to sit down to write, maybe you’re too busy.
Stacy: You know, that’s maybe the word you’re using, but probably it’s just your life is too full or maybe some priorities are not exactly set where they need to be. What I’m about to say probably is not gonna make a lot of sense, but hear me out. So one of the things that I’ve been doing is I’ve been trying to have an out of the house morning or like half of a day. I work from home. I’m recording this from my home office. And so although I’m on calls all the time nearly every day, I often am pretty alone here and I’m in the same space. And I love my home, I love my office, but, you know, kind of gets boring after a while. So what I’ve done is I now have a Portuguese class every Thursday morning.
Stacy: After that, I go and I work out of the house. And one, that’s opened me up to social interactions. Two, I’m challenging my brain with learning a new language. And three, I’m in different environments. And for me, that has really helped just bring a little bit more aliveness, awaken my brain a little more. And I’ve been really enjoying writing out of the house. So I do either I work on my book or I write emails to you. If you’re on my email list, you shouldn’t. You should be. If you’re not stacey ennis.com join again. I’ll be sure to include a link in the show notes, but that’s been great because I’m just switching up my environment a little, getting my brain more awake and alive in this beautiful world that I’M so lucky to live in.
Stacy: And it’s been a really important part for me in taking back my focus. And then there’s all the normal ones. Good sleep, hygiene. I try to get to bed at a reasonable time and sleep eight hours every night if I can. Good food, not drinking, alcohol, exercise. I do all of that. It’s a really important part for me. And keeping myself alert and awake and creative. I just want to again say that if you’re feeling like things are hard, you’re not alone. There are many people out there feeling like you do. If you’re finding it hard to write, you’re not alone. It’s normal. When there’s so much going on. And I don’t want you to feel helpless. I want you to know that there are real strategies that you can do that you can integrate into your life that can make things better.
Stacy: These are based off of neuroscience. We know that when we’re in new environments, it actually encourages our brain function, like the development of new neural pathways. We know that habits create new neural pathways, good habits and bad habits. We know that scrolling is detrimental to brain function. We know all of these things. We also know that creating is one of the best things that you can do for your brain to work better and so that you can create more.
Stacy: So while I know that there is so much and I never, ever want to minimize what’s going on, especially for those of you who are in groups that are highly affected by the things going on in the world, I recognize as a white person, as somebody who grew up in a privileged environment, that I can’t understand all that’s going on in all communities around the world. I would never in a million years claim to understand. And you still have a life to live. You have a book to write. You have so much to look forward to and so much good to create in the world. And I hope that today has helped you by giving you some ideas. Maybe you have more ideas that you can add to the ones that I gave you.
Stacy: And that maybe today there’s one thing you could pick from what I shared and you could do it. Go do that. Go try it and see if it makes a difference. And if you can, try to pick something and try to do it for at least a few weeks, so three to four weeks. And it only needs to be one thing. So maybe your one thing is you’re gonna go to bed at the same time every night, and you’re gonna bring a book and you’re going to set your phone across the room. Maybe that’s it. Or maybe your one thing is you’re going to work out of the house for one day a week. Whatever it is, take one thing and see if it makes a difference for you. Don’t do it all at once.
Stacy: You could do one thing at a time, or even two and try it. For me, it’s so important. I am not a perfect person. I will never claim to be. All of the things that I share with you are things I do because I am human. And I also have periods where I have a hard time focusing. And whenever that happens, I do a life audit and I go, aha, that’s it. And that and that. And then I try to fix it. That’s always my quest, is to better every day. I’d love to hear your thoughts. If you have more things that have worked for you, please share them either in the comments on YouTube or on the comments of this podcast, wherever you’re listening to it. I love learning from you.
Stacy: You always teach me so much and I’m sure that there’s some nuance you could add to what I shared or, you know, something that you’ve done that’s worked really well. So I would love to hear from you and I really hope that you find what works for you. You take a deep breath and you go out and create. I want to thank, as always, Rita Dominguez for her production of this podcast. I know it’s so repetitive. I know I say it every single week, but she is the reason that you are listening to this or watching this. She truly gets it out into the world. I am just the person that comes and talks. She does everything else and I am so grateful.
Stacy: And since you’re still listening to this or watching this, I would be so honored if you would take 30 seconds to leave a maybe five star review and rating and review and do make sure that you are following the podcast or subscribed on YouTube because that just helps you make sure that you don’t miss these amazing episodes. Right? And I will be back with you before you know it.
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