I’ll start this post with a bit of a confession. Over the Christmas holidays, I wasn’t my usual early-rising self. Between something like seven social engagements in ten days and the general hullabaloo around Christmas and New Year’s (okay, and maybe the Nintendo Wii now hooked up to my TV), my sleep schedule shifted later by about three hours. So with this week being my first full week back in the office, and me being a little on the tired side making the switch back, maintaining focus has been a bit more of a battle than it should be.

So what to do? Wait, I’ve written a few articles on how to modify your external environment to control the internal one, right? Let’s go re-read those and that should do the trick.

So, iPod in pocket, desktop image something vibrant in colour while calming in nature, and dressed for success. But I still found things a little challenging. What’s causing the speedbump now, you ask? Let me explain.

Right now they’re replacing the carpet in our offices. As this requires all of our things to be packed up in boxes, the walls of my cubicle are now empty, and are showing their dull, monotonous beige in all its glory. If you can’t quite picture it (I’m jealous), think back to the clone PC’s of the early 90’s and you get a great picture of that colour (or lack thereof).

So what’s the point of this rambling? It’s quite simple really. This beige led me to recognize something: If variety is the spice of life, then monotony is the watered-down, flavourless gruel.

This may seem like an obvious statement, but I find it’s one of those insidious things that sneaks up on you and saps your energy and focus, until you’re about as productive as you would be if you were trying to stop Niagara Falls with a sieve. I was working hard at changing all the details to promote productivity, but this one monotonous colour was fighting my efforts.

You can see this in every facet of your life. Doing the same workout, day-in and day-out, leads to plateauing, diminished returns, and frustration. Listening to the same song over and over, even if it’s one of your favourite songs, can lead to boredom and eventually a dislike of those things you love. Staring at the same colour walls every day can drive you nuts, and doing the same task over and over doesn’t necessarily lead to high throughput, but slowing output due to lack of engagement in the tasks at hand.

I think that it’s important to make a certain distinction here. Routine does not necessarily mean monotony. For some, myself included, having a general routine can be a great way to maintain productivity and ensure that I’m getting things done. But if the building blocks of that routine never change or evolve, this stagnation leads to monotony.

So what can we do? The key is to stay conscious. Be aware, be present in the moment, and sometimes take a step back and look at the bigger picture. This can help you recognize monotony before it really starts.

Remember, even the greatest gourmet food can become boring if you’re eating the same meals every day. So spice it up, and try the whole menu!

Cheers (or bon appetit!),

Adam