Nearly three-quarters of us have felt so stressed that we’ve been left feeling overwhelmed or unable to cope. In a world full of distractions and notifications, where the pace of life often feels like a treadmill set to sprint-mode, many of us are finding ourselves trapped in this cycle of busyness and brain fog. But is there a way out? Chris Griffiths and Caragh Medlicott, authors of The Focus Fix: Finding Clarity, Creativity and Resilience in an Overwhelming World, certainly think so.
Here they explain how to relearn the art of concentration. From the moment you first wake up, how long is it before you pick up your phone? For many of us, the answer is a matter of seconds – especially as so many of us use them as an alarm clock. Then, from this point onwards, our day is marked by the constant flash and ding of technological notifications.
Whether it’s messages from group chats or emails at work, our lives are increasingly managed and connected through our devices. Of course, theoretically, this should make our lives easier - you can get in touch with almost anyone at any time. But as with everything, there is also a downside to this continuous connection.
In this case, it’s the rise of a phenomenon known as technostress. The term was first popularised by the psychologist Craig Brod in the 1980s. Of course, Brod could never have imagined just how widespread and pressing this phenomenon would become when he first wrote about it.
At the time, he was referring to the gen.
