Just-In-Time PM #2: The Fundamentals of Flow

In Part 1, I introduced Return-on-Attention (ROA) as a way to evaluate how we invest our most precious resource – our attention.

But there is a key difference between investing money and investing attention. Units of currency are always uniform and interchangeable. Units of attention, on the other hand, are not at all created equal.

One minute of attention in a deep, tranquil state of concentration is potentially 100 times more valuable than the same minute waiting in line at the cashier. One hour of close collaboration with a thought partner potentially produces 100 times more value than an hour of small talk.

In other words, the state of mind you are in at any given moment powerfully shapes the quality of the attention you have at your disposal.