Social media is robbing you blind.
Mark Zuckerberg has us addicted to our phones, and we’re losing a lot more than just our privacy.
Each time you look at Instagram first thing in the morning… you short-circuit your brain.
Same thing if you check Facebook multiple times per day…
Or mindlessly scroll Twitter.
Our attention spans are shrinking and our productivity is cratering.
Most of us know this but can’t escape the addiction…
What excuse do you make for going to your phone first thing in the morning?
“I have to check my stats!”
“Must see who won the game!”
“Just need a quick peek at the news!”
These digital distractions are killing your short-term productivity, and your long-term hopes and dreams.
But it’s not your fault.
Social media companies have hundreds of brilliant neuroscientists and software engineers working around the clock to make opening your phone more addictive than cocaine.
Which is why you likely feel the impulse to keep going back and checking those new reels, posts, or tweets… again and again.
If this sounds like you then my guess is:
- You’re behind on deadlines because your output sucks
- Your sales are slumping because you have no time for strategic thinking
- And you’re not making progress on important projects (like writing that book you’ve dreamed of or drafting a business plan around your new big idea).
All because your social media addictions prevent you from doing deep work.
This is no way to win at the game of life.
It’s time I staged an intervention.
The solution is simple and obvious:
You need time away from your electronics.
You need to stop letting the hum, flash, buzz, and tweet of your smartphone rob you of your most productive hours.
Now I know what you’re thinking.
“Craig, this all sounds great, but how do I get away from my phone?”
I’ll explain in a moment, but first, a damaging admission.
The truth is… I struggle with distraction demons, too.
That’s why, since 2007, I’ve been building a “fence of rituals and routines” to protect my brain from temptation. This system allows me to do deep work daily.
That’s how I write 1,500 words — or more — before 6 a.m. every day for my books and weekly newsletters.
One of the best ways to build habits of steel like this is to harness the same technique Elon Musk uses to generate his crazy ideas (that end up making BILLIONS).
Elon is always asking, “What are people accepting as a standard when there’s actually room for significant improvement?”
That was my approach when figuring out how to become more productive and avoid the temptations of social media.
For example, people just accept that you must always have access to the Internet. But you don’t, and shouldn’t.
That’s why, for 18 months, I cut my Internet access at home.
This “extreme measure” prevented me from going online and helped me build up my “digital distraction resistance.”
Each morning, I’d wake up at 4 a.m., sit at my kitchen table, and write for two hours before eventually going to the office where I had access to the web.
Many of those hours were uncomfortable, but the same is true of any new workout or project that requires discipline.
Nothing worth having comes without a price.
Fortunately, we can find ways to “hack” the system and get results faster.
That’s where Elon Musk’s method comes in handy. Here’s his three-step master plan:
First, Elon says, state the problem.
Let’s say you want to fix your urge to “scratch that social media itch” immediately in the morning.
I get it. Because at this very moment, I’m trying to fight off a similar problem.
You see, I’ve written nearly half my daily word quota, and part of my brain wants to take a “quick peek at Facebook.”
Second, Musk says, gather evidence.
I call this getting “outside eyes” through external observation and introspection.
It’s always good to be self-aware and know your temptation triggers.
But it’s tough to be conscious of every negative behavior or bad habit.
That’s why you need someone else (like a friend, coach, or mentor) to point these out to you.
Your combined observations are your evidence.
Third, Musk says, develop a hypothesis based on “cause and effect.”
Identifying the relationship between stimulus and response in your life is a massive key to success.
For me, I recognize when I struggle to come up with my next sentence while writing, I instantly open a browser window and start to mess around…
Or pick up my phone and open Instagram.
Why? I need to feel I’m moving forward (or at least not frustrated by stalling out), so I go to entertainment that will take my mind off the task at hand.
That’s why I’ve trained myself to return to clear-cut goals and a set schedule.
In this case… writing 1,500 words every morning.
Why am I writing these words? To help my clients and build the Early to Rise world.
That’s what drives me more than almost anything else.
And so, I return to typing and before long, the ideas are streaming again.
I know this is the structure of my mornings, so I don’t have any moment when I’m asking myself, “What should I be doing?”
Because that’s when distraction takes over.
If you get up with no plan in the morning, you probably have a 100% chance of going online.
But if you prepare a detailed to-do list the night before (using the 3-step system I teach in my “Perfect Day Formula”)...
It automatically helps you stay on track and leads to greater productivity.
That’s how I use the Elon Musk Method for solving the Mark Zuckerberg Problem.
And you too can apply the Musk method to overcoming any bad habit.
Not just for morning distractions — you’ll also be able to identify every weakness, obstacle, distraction, and temptation in your life and develop a plan to overcome each.
This is also what we do with our coaching programs, online workshops and mastermind events...
We work together to build a plan that destroys your performance demons and sets you up to dominate your days.
You and I both know you are capable of so much more…
So stop letting that smart-phone addiction hold you back from big accomplishments in life.
Success Loves Speed,
Craig
PS - Want weekly LIVE trainings to improve your productivity, transform your marketing, and close more sales? Join our private FB community >> HERE
PPS - Want 1:1 mentorship to grow your business AND have more free time? Just REPLY to this email with the word “FREEDOM” and we’ll set up a time to connect with you to see if we can help.
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