Guidance for: I'm deep in something and I can't come out

Land it, don't yank it

Deep focus isn't a fault, and it's most of what you're good at. The trouble is that it has no ending built in, and being pulled out of it hurts more than most people expect — which is why you keep refusing to stop.

Then, if you have room for it

• Leave yourself a note before you stop. Coming back to a cold task is the actual cost of interrupting yourself.
• Land at a seam rather than mid-air — end of a paragraph, end of a function, end of a scene.
• Give the exit a cue you didn't have to decide on: an alarm, a calendar block, someone expecting you.
• Notice which things you can never stop doing. That list is useful information about what your attention wants.

Watch

• How to give your brain the stimulation it needsHow to ADHD · 8 minTreats under-stimulation as the actual problem instead of weak discipline.(opens in a new tab)

Read

• Monotropism, from the people who named itMonotropism.orgAttention as a single deep channel. Explains hyperfocus and hating interruptions as one thing.(opens in a new tab)
• Time blindness: 12 ways to use every hourADDitudeExplains the time horizon idea and walks through specific timer tools.(opens in a new tab)