I travel a lot between September and November. As a matter of fact, I wrote this while on a flight from Whitehorse to Vancouver. It was the second flight I had taken in as many days, as I flew from Vancouver to Whitehorse the previous day. After that flight, I flew from Vancouver to Dallas early the next morning. All in all, I spent about 20 hours in the air over that two week span.
And I got a ton of work done because was in Airplane Mode for all of that time.
When you’re on a flight, it’s still widely acceptable that you can’t be reached by others, which means communication via email and text is non-existent. And if you travel alone, you’ll also be able to focus on what you need, ought, and want to do.
Here’s what Airplane Mode means to me:
- I am limited by who can reach me.
- I am limited by who I can reach.
After I acknowledge this, I then structuring my task list around these ideas. As a result, I am able to get a lot of focused work done in the air. Whether I am writing, reading, or planning, I’m able to accomplish these tasks without being distracted, disrupted, or diverted.
So despite being instructed to put your devices into Airplane Mode during your flight, put yourself in Airplane Mode as well.
Better yet, instead of just going into that mode when you’re in the sky, you can use it when you’re on the ground. You’ll likely need it more often there since you spend more time there, right?
Once you’ve gotten into the habit of having your own Airplane Mode, maybe this specific mode can be identified as a different term – like Full Focus Mode. Then this mode can have even more impact because you won’t relate it only to being on an airplane.
There’s really no difference in what happens when I’m in Full Focus Mode and when I’m in Airplane Mode. At this point, my brain needs to rationalize why I should work on tasks designated with Airplane Mode even though I’m not flying anywhere at that time. Essentially, Airplane Mode acts as a trigger. It is an established transition point to work on tasks that require greater attention and by using it consistently the name morphs into a more overarching mode name of Full Focus.
As you sort out what modes can (and will) work for you, I encourage you to tap into the power of the mode that can really help your productivity take flight – no matter where you are. Airplane Mode isn’t a foreign concept – it’s a button on most smartphones after all – so use it as a way to trigger you into tackling tasks that require greater focus and watch your productivity soar.
