Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life by Nir Eyal

In Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life, Nir Eyal has assembled very easy-to-read, realistic explanations of the external and internal prompts which compel human behavior. Those analyses include tools for his readers to break unproductive habits and build healthy habits. Not everyone is going to agree with his definitions of “unproductive” or “healthy.” That’s OK. Not everyone is going to be able to use every suggestion. Also OK. What’s critical is that you come to the effort with curiosity and a willingness to experiment with the concepts. As Eyal’s title suggests, he is predominantly concerned with technological distractions. Doesn’t mean you can’t try these ideas with other challenges.

I most appreciated that Eyal used himself as the test subject for these methods. His honest first-person approach made his arguments believable. I often object to a kind of book I term an “Of Course You Can” book: a book with little guidance  about how to determine why, so far, you haven’t used all the oh-so-sensible tips and tricks included in the materials. If you could easily accomplish the tips and tricks, you might not be reading the book in the first place. I was braced for Indistractable to be an “Of Course You Can” offering. I was very pleased when I discovered it’s a refreshing opposite.