Your Brain Has a “Superpower” You’re Probably Wasting Every Day

In partnership with

Good morning Grinder,

Have you ever sat down in the morning completely determined to have a productive day, only to look at the clock three hours later and realize you've somehow managed to answer two emails, check Facebook, scroll through Instagram, watch a video you didn't even intend to watch, make another cup of coffee, and somehow accomplish almost nothing that was actually important?

If you've ever experienced this, don't worry-you are not alone.

In fact, you might be experiencing one of the biggest problems of modern life: we have more access to information, entertainment, and communication than ever before, but less ability to control our attention.

Our phones buzz, emails arrive, notifications pop up, and every app seems to be screaming, "Look at me!"

And then we wonder why we can't concentrate.

But what if the problem isn't that you aren't motivated?

What if you simply haven't learned how to get your brain into the right state?

Steven Kotler, an author and researcher who has spent years studying peak performance, has devoted much of his work to understanding something called flow-that remarkable state where you become so completely absorbed in what you're doing that distractions seem to disappear, time feels different, and the work itself becomes almost effortless.

You've probably experienced it before.

Maybe you were working on something you loved and suddenly realized three hours had passed.

Maybe you were exercising, creating something, solving a difficult problem, or having a conversation where you became so engaged that you completely lost track of time.

You weren't forcing yourself to concentrate.

You were simply there.

That is flow.

And according to Kotler, there are ways to create the conditions that make flow much more likely.

Watch Steven Kotler's Big Think interview, "How to enter 'flow state' on command"

The Sweet Spot Between Boredom and Overwhelm

One of the most fascinating things about flow is the relationship between challenge and skill.

If something is too easy, you get bored.

If something is far beyond your ability, you get overwhelmed.

But when something is just slightly beyond what you're currently capable of doing, your brain has a reason to become completely engaged.

Think about the last time you learned something difficult.

Maybe you were learning a new sales technique, trying to build a business, learning a new software program, giving a presentation, or doing something you've never done before.

At first, you probably felt uncomfortable.

You didn't know exactly what you were doing, and your brain had to work harder than usual.

But then you started figuring things out.

You became better.

Eventually, what once seemed difficult became familiar.

And that's where growth happens.

We often think discomfort means we're failing, but sometimes discomfort is actually evidence that we're learning.

So ask yourself: When was the last time you deliberately did something that was slightly beyond your current ability?

Not something impossible.

Not something that makes you want to crawl under your desk.

Just something that makes you think, "I'm not completely sure I can do this, but I'm going to try."

That is where your next level may be hiding.

Maybe You Don't Need More Motivation

We've all said it.

"I just don't feel motivated today."

But here's the problem with waiting for motivation: motivation is incredibly unreliable.

Some mornings you wake up ready to conquer the world.

Other mornings, getting out of bed feels like you've been assigned a group project with your entire family.

If your success depends on feeling motivated every morning, you're going to have a difficult time.

The trick is to create a challenge that gives your brain something to focus on.

Instead of saying, "I'm going to make some sales calls today," give yourself a specific target.

"I have 90 minutes, and I'm going to make 30 calls, reach five decision-makers, and try to book two appointments."

Now you've created a game.

There's a goal.

There's a clock.

There's uncertainty.

There's something to chase.

And suddenly, the activity becomes more engaging.

You can do this with almost anything.

Instead of saying, "I'm going to exercise," ask yourself how much you can accomplish in 45 minutes.

Instead of saying, "I'm going to work on my business," decide exactly what you want completed before the timer ends.

Instead of saying, "I need to study," challenge yourself to master one specific concept.

Turn your work into a challenge, and you may discover that your brain becomes much more interested in participating.

Your Phone Is Probably Winning

Now let's talk about the biggest enemy of flow.

Your phone.

That wonderful little rectangle that can help you run a business, communicate with anyone in the world, navigate your car, take photographs, manage your finances, and simultaneously destroy your concentration in approximately three seconds.

It's incredible.

It's also incredibly distracting.

You can be deeply focused on something important when your phone lights up.

You look at it.

It's a text.

You answer.

Then you see another notification.

You check that.

Then you remember something else.

Ten minutes later, you're watching a video about a restaurant you've never heard of in a city you've never visited.

And then you look back at your work and wonder, "What was I doing?"

The problem isn't only the ten minutes you lost.

It's the mental momentum you lost.

If you want to experience deeper focus, you have to protect your attention.

Try giving yourself just 90 minutes.

Put your phone somewhere you can't easily reach it.

Turn off notifications.

Close your email.

Choose one important objective.

Then give that one thing your complete attention.

At first, it might feel strange.

You may even feel the urge to check your phone for absolutely no reason.

Resist it.

Stay with the task.

Eventually, your brain begins to settle down.

And once it does, you may be amazed by how much you can accomplish.

Growth Requires a Little Discomfort

There is a dangerous place in life called comfortable enough.

You're not miserable enough to change.

You're not challenged enough to grow.

You're simply comfortable enough to stay where you are.

But extraordinary growth rarely happens there.

Growth happens when you walk into the room where you don't know everyone.

It happens when you make the phone call you're nervous about making.

It happens when you learn the skill you currently don't understand.

It happens when you attempt something and discover that you're not very good at it yet.

Notice that word:

Yet.

You aren't bad at it forever.

You're simply inexperienced right now.

The person who is excellent at something today was once terrible at it.

They just kept going.

And eventually, the uncomfortable became familiar.

The unfamiliar became manageable.

And the difficult became easier.

That's how mastery happens.

So What Deserves Your Attention?

Imagine what could happen if you stopped trying to do ten things at once and became exceptionally good at focusing on one important thing.

Imagine what you could accomplish if you gave your goals the same level of attention you give your phone.

Imagine what might change if you stopped waiting to feel motivated and instead created an environment where action became easier.

Tomorrow, choose one meaningful challenge.

Make it slightly harder than what you're comfortable with.

Give yourself a measurable goal.

Remove distractions.

Set a timer for 60 or 90 minutes.

Then begin.

You don't need a perfect morning routine.

You don't need to wake up at 4:00 a.m., drink something green that tastes like lawn clippings, take an ice bath, meditate on a mountain, and write seventeen pages in a leather journal before breakfast.

You just need to focus on something that matters.

Because your attention is more valuable than you probably realize.

Every hour you spend distracted is an hour of your life.

Every hour you spend learning is an hour of your life.

Every hour you spend building something meaningful is an hour of your life.

So perhaps the question isn't, "How can I find more time?"

Maybe the better question is:

"What deserves more of the time I already have?"

Your next breakthrough may not require more motivation.

It may not require more money.

It may not even require more time.

It might simply require you to put your phone down, choose a challenge that scares you just enough, and give yourself permission to become completely absorbed in the work.

Because when you learn to control your attention, you begin to control something much bigger than your productivity.

You begin to control where your life is going.

Best Wishes,

N. Amadeus

Everything GTM. One platform.

Small teams don't have time to stitch together five tools and hope it works.

Apollo gives you everything you need to find leads, reach them, and close deals — all in one place:

• 230M+ verified contacts

• AI-powered outreach

• Data enrichment

• Inbound lead capture

• Meeting scheduler

• And more

Stop juggling tools and start building pipeline that scales.

With Apollo, the AI revenue engine powering 4M+ users.

Sign up for free