Noise
Living and Leading When Nobody Can Focus
1. Edition December 2019
304 Pages, Hardcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Further versions
Teaches managers and leaders to cut through the static and hone their focusing skills
In the current digital age, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to stay focused. Smartphones, tablets, smart watches, and other devices constantly vie for our attention. In both business and life, we are constantly bombarded with tweets, likes, mentions, and a constant stream of information. The inability to pay attention impacts learning, parenting, prioritizing, and leading. Not surprisingly, attention spans have gotten shorter. Already being pulled in a dozen directions every minute, managers and business leaders often struggle to address important issues and focus on everything that needs attention.
Noise: Living and Leading When Nobody Can Focus teaches managers and leaders how to help themselves and others sharpen their focusing skills. In this follow-up to his first book Brief--the proven, step-by-step approach to clear, concise, and effective communication--author Joseph McCormack helps readers cut through the static and devote their attention to what is important. This engaging, informative book will help you:
* Apply effective, real-world techniques to hone your focus and reduce interference
* Learn the lessons taught to organizations such as Harley-Davidson, BMO Harris Bank, MasterCard, and the US Army
* Understand how modern technology can actually strengthen your focus if used correctly
* Avoid becoming a casualty of "weapons of mass distraction"
Noise: Living and Leading When Nobody Can Focus is a valuable resource for leaders and managers seeking to develop laser-sharp focus and apply it to everything you do.
Preface xix
How the Book is Organized xxii
How to Read This Book xxiii
Acknowledgments xxv
Part One Weapons of Mass Distraction 01
1 Noise, Noise, So Much Noise 3
Kenny Chesney Gets it Right
Hearing Decline and the Loss of Focus
Access to Information Will Only Increase
Attention Spans Will Remain Elusive
Our Minds Will Become Anemic and Impenetrable
2 Huh? We're Going Collectively Deaf 11
So, Why Do We Tune Out? A Variety of Reasons
The Impact of the "Elusive 600" on Our Listening
How Words Become Worthless--and Triggers for a Tune-Out
My Mom Thought I Had a Hearing Problem
3 Brain Basics: Are Your Penguins Falling Off the Iceberg? 19
Our Brains are Changing
Working Memory in Decline
Brains are Like Computers
We're Losing Impulse Control
Our Brains Get Hooked
How Often Do We Check Our Smartphones?
4 Living in an Info Junkie Crack House 31
Training and Education Will Be the Gateway Drug
Impending Health Impacts?
A Potential Threat to Consider
Who Can Stop This?
More Brain Celery
Part Two The Big Tune-Out is Coming (Imagining The Unthinkable-Six Short Stories to Wake You Up) 41
5 Always Stuck at School 43
Serious Triggers
New Protective Behaviors
Terrified Parents
Disturbing Statistics
Our Children in Isolation
Is it Addiction?
6 A Misleading Leader 53
Streaming Information
Losing Momentum
Powerful Monologue
All Talk, No Action
7 The Loss of Civil Discourse 61
Her Civic Duty
Uninformed and Confused
No Respect
Tower of Babel
Catching Her Attention
8 Mind-filled Momentum at Work 67
Connected While Exercising
Last-minute Briefing
Driving Connected
Yet More Tasks and E-mails
Diving Right into the Weeds
Trying to Salvage Success
9 2050: A Parenting Odyssey 77
Technology Was Only a Mild Interrupter for Them
A Carefree Time
Deep Loss of Daily Contact
Struggle to Disconnect
Technology is with You Everywhere You Go
It's Just Living for Them
Why Did We Worry So Much?
Parenting without a Voice
Fighting a Force
10 Safety Briefing with Near-tragic Results 85
Part Three Time for You to Tune In: Awareness Management (AM 101) 93
11 Awareness Management 101 95
Lighting the Path Before Us
Lives Can Become a Blur
Missing the Moment Entirely
Our Minds are Spinning Beach Balls
The Elusive 600: Your Enemy or Your Friend?
Runaway Thoughts
Waking Your Mind from Mindlessness to Mindfulness
Directed, Undirected, and Misdirected
Commit to "Awareness Management"
What if We Don't Manage Our Awareness?
AM Pre-set Buttons
12 Take Aim: Set Your Sights on What Matters Most 109
Essentialists versus Non-essentialists
No More Deafening Noise
Pointless Routines
A Minimalist Decision: Keep it Simple
Aim Small, Miss Small--Tips to Direct Your Focus
Post It: Simplicity Isn't Complicated
To Simplify is a Deliberate Decision
13 Saying No to Noise 123
Just Say No
The Power of Self-Mastery
Overcoming FOMO
No, Here's How You Do It
Addictions Weaken Willpower
Running to Yes on the Road Toward No
Self-control is a Personal Way to Stop the Noise
Impulse Management: A Few Daily Distractions
Feel the Peace of Singlemindedness
Five Small Steps to Make That Little Word a Big Part of Your Life
14 Quiet Time: Restoring and Recharging Your Mind 135
Dimly Lit Dinnertime: Our Brains Barraged and Batteries Drained
The Extrovert Ideal and the Allure of Open Spaces
Why Be Quiet (I've Got Something to Say About That)?
Risky Isolation
Rewarding Isolation
Steps Toward Quiet
Contemplatives in the Middle of the World
15 Present Listening: A Gift Worth Giving Now 149
Why is it So Exhausting to Listen?
Professional Listeners: It Pays to Be Interested, Not Interesting
Becoming a Present Listener--Seven Critical Considerations
A Special Reward for Special Forces
Selling Yourself Short with Others
The Payoff of Present Listening
Part Four Getting Others to Dial In: Focus Management (FM 101) 159
16 Focus Management 101 161
Changing an Environment That Doesn't Want to Be Changed
Putting Fun Back into a Party
The Role of a Focus Manager
A Program Manager for a Life Filled with Simplicity and Clarity
FM Pre-set Buttons
17 Wanted: BRIEF Communicators 169
When So Many Words Become Worthless
Losing the Meaning
You Can Change It
Message Lost in Translation
Winston Churchill's Brevity Memorandum
Concise Communication: A Necessary Curriculum Requirement
BRIEF Basics
Clarity is Your Number 1 Priority
18 Communicate Like a Magician 181
Brain Science Behind Sleight of Hand
The Power to Make the Restless Rest
A Baker's Dozen of Communication Techniques, Tips, and Tricks
19 Preparing the Environment for Noise Abatement 191
The Failure of Open Floor Plans
Screens Everywhere at Work
Home Rooms Unplugged
Old-school Schools
Remaking Healthy Environments to Filter Noise Naturally
20 Herding Cats: Facilitating to Focus More, Fidget Less 205
The Joy of a Canceled Meeting
Teaching Students to Tune Out
Need Some Help Leading at Home?
Fundamentals of Facilitation: At Work, School, or Home
Making it Easy for Everyone to Work, Learn, and Live Together
Part Five Pre-Sets: Simple Programming for Noise Reduction 215
21 Personalizing Your Pre-Sets 217
Personal Pre-set Programming: Customize Your Settings to Manage the Noise "The Lineup": Playing to Win by Keeping Score
22 That Sounds Wonderful 235
Recommended Reading 239
Notes 241
References 249
About the Author 257
About The BRIEF Lab 259
Index 261
Joe is the founder and managing director of The BRIEF Lab, an organization dedicated to teaching professionals, military leaders, and entrepreneurs how to think and communicate clearly. His clients include Boeing, Harley-Davidson, Microsoft, Mastercard, DuPont, and select military units and government agencies. He publishes a weekly podcast called Just Saying that helps people master the elusive skills of focus and brevity.
He lives in Pinehurst, NC, and suburban Chicago, IL.
