We live in an increasingly complex world that, more than ever, is chock full of various types of distractions. These distractions can have endless adverse effects on our relationships, our jobs, and our ability to accomplish tasks that – deep down – we know we should be working on instead. However, there are times when the ability to distract oneself is extremely beneficial to one’s mental health.
Distraction may seem like an overarching negative term, but there are key benefits to being able to distract ourselves at will. After all, if there wasn’t some sort of positive aspect to it, why would pretty much every single human seek distractions out? From calming ourselves down to overcoming sadness or anger to simply giving ourselves a mental break – distraction can be a wonderful thing.
In the following article, we’ll take a look at how to distract yourself. We’ll also discuss the many benefits of self-distraction and the ways at which you can use the process to impact your life positively. So if you want to have a clearer mind, recharge your social batteries, and prepare yourself to tackle life’s problems, read on.
Why Would Someone Want to Distract Themselves?
As humans, we are often subject to internal and external forces that can have a huge effect on our ability to remain calm, to be happy, or to overcome challenges in our daily lives. In some cases, people suffer from past traumas and / or mental illnesses (anxiety, depression, etc.) that make getting past these forces very very difficult.
The “forces” or stimuli we’re discussing here can be hundreds of different things, some affecting us all at once. We could have a predilection toward a type of addiction, or our brains might have a tendency to shut down when challenged. No matter the force and no matter our reaction to it, many of us find huge comforts in distractions.
Some distractions have an ultimately negative effect on us, such as gambling or smoking or drinking. Other distractions, however, have the power to reinforce our ability to overcome the forces that impact our daily life. They empower us, recharge our batteries, and give us the rest we need from the “fight” to come back and do it the next day.
Benefits of Distracting Yourself
As we’ve mentioned several times, there are clear benefits to being able to distract yourself, providing the distractions you choose are ultimately positive. However, there’s a bit of subjectivity to be considered when wondering what constitutes a positive distraction. For the sake of simplicity, let’s assume it’s a distraction that can have the following benefits, without any notable negatives.
Distractions Can Make Us More Creative
Distractions are unique in that they essentially allow us to exclude one set of stimuli in favor of another. When we’re attempting to be creative, we can be more successful if we allow our attention to react to stimuli we haven’t necessarily considered yet. This process is, in many ways, similar to the group activity of “brainstorming,” in which all ideas have merit until proven otherwise.
When distractions happen while meditating, walking, or reading, we can learn to see the creative value of those distractions and pull inspiration from them. For many, practicing regular self-distraction is the best way to stay artistically and creatively unique in a world full of people generating endless content.
Distractions Can Help with Pain Management
Our brains are powerful instruments, but they have their limitations. We can’t pay close attention to every single set of stimuli going on around us, so we have to focus on just a few things. When we are in physical, emotional, or mental pain, however, these sensations tend to become all-encompassing and can lead us down some scary roads if we don’t find a way to overcome them.
Positive distractions, however, have been scientifically proven to help us minimize this pain and even overcome it with enough treatment. In these circumstances, the distractions help us “rewire” our brain to focus on things other than our pain, which in turn provides a doorway for us to minimize – and potentially eliminate – those feelings.
Distractions Can Help Us Find Solutions
Perhaps the best example of this is the famous “apple” story from Sir Isaac Newton (even if it isn’t necessarily true). Anyway, in this story, you have a great mind allowing himself to become distracted in a beautiful garden. Suddenly, an apple falls, triggering an understanding of the natural world (specifically gravity) that still has ramifications today.
According to several studies, when we are distracted, the parts of the brain that regulate decision-making and logic are still quite active. This fact means that great ideas can quite literally come to us when we least expect us. Though there is always going to be value in deep-thought, focused problem solving, distractions are sometimes the best means to an end.
Distractions Make Us Happier
Our mood determines more about how we can approach our daily life than many of us think. From how we decide to manage our time to our ability to deal with challenges, bad moods and good moods are hugely impactful on our day-to-day decisions. Distractions, in many ways, allow us to quickly and easily elevate our mood to better approach problems.
If you take away the challenges or problems that are dominating your mind (and your mood), the distractions you create will leave you in a more open-minded state. This state of mind has an elevating effect on our mood and puts us in a much better position to re-attack those challenges later.
Distractions Empower Us
Many different studies have shown a direct link between positive distractions like exercise and volunteer work and the ability to conquer our demons, especially issues like addiction and drug abuse. Even anecdotally, such an idea can make a lot of sense. After all, anyone who has ever set boundaries for themselves knows that not thinking about the bad habit or action requires a level of distraction.
In the following section, you’ll see many positive suggestions for how to distract yourself that would be just as useful for generating creativity as they would for conquering addiction. In other cases, the distraction will quite obviously be one designed to help us overcome much more severe challenges than becoming a better artist.
How to Distract Yourself
Now that we’ve established why learning to distract yourself can be a positive force in your life, we’ll discuss how to distract yourself in a more in-depth manner. It’s important to note, however, that some of these techniques are much easier than others. This fact is important mainly because some of these tips are more about fighting off bad impulses than merely creating good ones.
NOTE: As always, how you approach the technique (and the challenges you’re trying to distract yourself from), will determine the importance of the endeavor. If it is ever a matter of self-harm or severe illness, however, we cannot recommend enough that you see a professional for help.
Do Some Drawing (Especially if You Can’t Draw)
Art is endlessly therapeutic. It allows us to completely disconnect from what’s going on around us and focus our energy toward creating something that, in the end, doesn’t have to please anyone. Even if you’re already an artist looking for a distraction, try a completely different medium than the one you’re used to working in. Better yet, take a childish medium like crayons, collage, or diorama to open your mind.
That said, the people who benefit the most from this type of distraction are those who have never considered working in an artistic medium at all. For these men and women, there are no aspirations about the quality of the work they are attempting. Whatever they’re creating will be organic, original, and completely therapeutic.
So if you want to free your mind and truly distract yourself, try going to the craft store and picking up some paints, crayons, or other art supplies. If you want a better distraction, try joining a drawing class or art group where other like minded people do the same.
Learn to Meditate
When performed correctly, meditation can give you a sense of control over your mind that you never thought possible. Meditation requires you clear your mind of all but the simplest stimuli, which can provide a great distraction from any problems, ideas, or addictions that might be plaguing you at the moment. Furthermore, meditation puts you in touch with your subconscious, where many unique ideas may lurk.
Meditation is an essential part of life for many people in the Eastern world, especially those that practice Hinduism, Buddhism, and other reflective religions. Many people who have faced hardships in their lives learn to adopt mediation as a way to get over these challenges, and many health professionals believe that meditation can increase the likelihood of escaping addiction.
If sitting on a mountaintop changing “om” doesn’t seem like something you’d do, I have great news for you. Meditation comes in many forms, and not all of them require yoga pants. You can meditate right in your own home, while walking around your local park, or even while you’re listening to music. In the end, it’s all about getting in touch with your mind, which takes knowing yourself first.
Movie (Or TV Show) Marathon
We tell ourselves that we watch TV way too much. Despite how prevalent entertainment is in our modern culture, we still judge ourselves whenever we feel we’re partaking too much. But why? Entertainment is just that, and who is to say we don’t have a right to check out of the real world now and again and binge watch a great show or movie series?
While even Netflix will eventually judge you for watching too many episodes of a show in a row, there’s no real harm in distracting yourself by watching something you enjoy. Luckily, streaming services have made doing this much more manageable by hosting not just a few episodes, but entire seasons of shows that you can watch to your heart’s content.
There are obvious limits to how much of your time you should spend watching TV, but if it provides you with enough distraction to help you recharge your batteries, have at it. We all need to learn how to let ourselves enjoy the things we love, especially if they provide a welcome distraction from life’s daily challenges.
Go Back to School
When the going gets tough, many of the world’s toughest learn a new skill, language, or subject. When it comes to positive distractions, few things are more productive than taking a class at a community college, joining an art group, or teaching yourself something at home. Not only will your mind be sufficiently distracted, but you’ll be enhancing your life at the same time.
Our minds are at their best when we’re challenging them with something new, but many of us haven’t put ourselves to that sort of test since college. This lack of “mind exercise” can allow a lot of negative feelings to pile up and dominate our consciousness. Luckily, the second we start learning again, our mind can push these things aside like clutter off a desk.
If you want to distract yourself healthily, don’t be afraid to learn something new. You’ll often be surprised what roads your new-found skill might take you down in the future.
Try a Complex Baking Project
Cooking is one of those skills that used to be common but that we have long ago outsourced to five-star restaurants, hipster cafes, and other modern eateries. That said, cooking – particularly baking – is one of the most satisfying ways you can distract yourself while also mastering a new skill. Best of all, every time you practice this new distraction, you’ll end up with something yummy to eat as well.
Pastries, cakes, cupcakes, and other sweets are fun to make, provide a significant challenge, and allow you to completely forget what’s going in your life and concentrate on what’s going on in the kitchen. As you get better, you can attempt more complex and more delicious recipes, impressing yourself and your friends with your new-found skills.
If you’re looking for the most delicious of distractions from your everyday worries, try making some of the most challenging recipes on the planet, like rainbow cheesecake, baklava, Napoleon, and tiramisu.
Take a (Literal) Walk in the Park
There’s simply no denying the calming, relaxing effect that spending time in nature can have on our minds. Even the most hardcore city-dweller will often find themselves reinvigorated by time spent walking through forests, trees, and mountains. But before you argue that walks in the park are best for reflecting on our problems, we have to note that you can easily use your time in nature as a distraction from your worries as well.
This technique is all about how you spend your time in nature rather than the mere fact that you go. Sure, you could ignore your surroundings and just use the quiet to focus on your problems, but you can also use nature as your distraction from those problems. Try actually looking at the trees, animals, and birds. Think about what they’re doing, how they live, and what the place might look like years from now.
If you want to be distracted, the natural world has an abundant source of beauty to be contemplated daily. Not only will you feel a deep sense of calm by reconnecting with the world, but you’ll also discover the power you have over your conscious thoughts.
Volunteer Your Time to a Great Cause
If we sit down and look at our lives, many of us will discover that one of the main things that is missing from them is merely giving to others. Regardless of our upbringing, our income level, and our station in life, empathic giving without the expectation of reward is one of the fastest ways we can clear our minds and refocus on what’s truly important.
Perspective is a powerful thing, yet so few of us truly seek it out. One of the best ways to get that perspective is to donate your time to people who have less than you. Doing this could mean anything from volunteering at a soup kitchen to working for Habitat for Humanity to a wealth of other giving opportunities. Depending on your skills, you could even teach or tutor.
Volunteering is a unique way to distract yourself because it doesn’t so much take your focus away from the challenges in your life but makes them seem far less challenging in the big scheme of things. In a lot of ways, seeing the struggles that less fortunate people have to go through can completely redefine the importance of your problems.
Explore the Bookstore or Library
There are two kinds of people in this world: those that love bookstores and those that are yet to find out they love bookstores. Along with libraries, second hand bookstores are among the best places in the world to lose yourself (and your problems along with it).
Many people claim they can spend hours weaving around the shelves in search of tomes that they didn’t even know they were looking for in the first place. These places are also very quiet and peaceful, creating a magical environment that’s not unlike walking in nature. One top of that, they usually smell like leather, glue, and old book pages – a favorite of introverts everywhere.
If you want a distraction from your everyday concerns, try heading to your local used bookstore and spending some time looking around. If you see a cover or a title that looks interesting, pick it up and read a few pages. If you like what you read, consider buying it. Shopping for books is like treasure hunting, and the treasure you find will end up distracting you for hours on end.
Turn to Exercise
Except in scarce instances, there usually is no such thing as “unhealthy” exercise. Plus, since exercise is something that many of us try to avoid, it can be the perfect distraction from the challenges of our daily life. Indeed, providing you throw yourself into it wholeheartedly, exercise might even help solve some of the problems you have, especially those concerning weight, self-esteem, and health.
Aside from the ability to tone and shape our bodies, exercise releases serotonin and dopamine, which makes us physically happier and allows us to better approach our problems in the long run. Furthermore, for many people, going to the gym, going for a bike ride, or going for a run is one of the only times they can put on some music and spend some time alone with their mind.
If you want to pursue a healthy distraction that will actually have a dramatic effect on your life, consider joining a gym or setting up some other training program. You could even consider learning a martial art to help build additional confidence and give yourself yet another skill to add to your repertoire.
Puzzles, Games, and Friendly Competition
Depending on whether or not you’re looking for a social distraction or not, you can get a lot of enjoyment out of things like puzzles and board games. If you’d rather distract yourself than have friends distract you, try starting with puzzles. Unlike the old days, puzzles come in hundreds of unique forms, including 3D concepts and super-hard, thousand-piece monstrosities.
If you are feeling a bit social, considering playing some fun, distracting games like Risk (which can take hours on end), Settlers of Catan, or some of the more humorous games on the market like Cards Against Humanity, What Do You Meme?, and Utter Nonsense. Though some of the latter are not for the faint of heart (or mind), they are sure to leave you in stitches and miles away from your problems.
Even video games, which are commonly regarded as a waste of time, are a great way to distract yourself and recharge your brain. Studies have even shown that the problem-solving effects of video games can make us a bit smarter, and help us to better tackle issues that we face in our real lives. So have some fun, play a game, and get back to the real world when you’re ready.
Go on a Cleaning Binge
Got a cluttered mind? Try decluttering your space to distract yourself. There’s a reason why many of us get enjoyment from our annual spring cleaning – most of us appreciate having a neat, clean space in which to live and work. Though it’s merely a metaphor for our ability to clear our minds, it can still provide a welcome distraction for hours on end.
Cleaning, especially the deep, between-the-cracks type of cleaning, gives our minds something to think about other than our daily challenges and concerns. After a bit of time, we can completely transform the space we live in, rid our homes of dirt, mold, and dust, and generally construct a cleaner, more creative space in which to work.
Treat Yourself
One of the things that many of us have accepted into our lives is the concept that denying ourselves things gives us control. While in some ways, this is true, it doesn’t necessarily represent a good type of control over our lives.
Think of it like saying no to a child when they want a toy or snack – not because you don’t want them to have it, but because you feel the need to show them who’s boss.
We can fall into cycles of denial like this quite easily in our lives, and it doesn’t always do us as much good as we think. For this reason, it’s sometimes necessary to treat ourselves to something nice.
You can treat yourself to a day off, an evening out, a nice dinner, or a slice of cake whenever we want. It’s a good way to distract your mind from more serious tasks and reward it for the job it does every day.
In the end, life is not a series of punishments that we inflict upon ourselves. Often, if we find ourselves struggling creatively or unable to overcome certain challenges, all that’s missing is a little reward. After all, even the mule should get to eat the carrot now and again. Right?
Final Thoughts
We hope this article has provided some valuable insight into how to distract yourself in positive, affirming, and beneficial ways. We also hope that you’ve come away with a better understanding of why someone might want to distract themselves, and the distinct difference between positive distractions and negative ones.
As you go forward, however, keep in mind that our problems are only as big as we allow them to be. In the end, you should seek the perspective that comes from acknowledging that other people have challenges we could not begin to comprehend. Recognizing this fact will not just allow us to be more creative and more productive, but happier people in general.