Dopamine Detox : A Short Guide to Remove Distractions and Train Your Brain to Do Hard Things (Productivity Series Book 1)

by Thibaut Meurisse

To help reclaim your focus I’ve created a workbook as a companion guide to this book. Make sure you download it at the following URL: https://whatispersonaldevelopment.org/dopamine-detox

Contrary to what many people believe, dopamine is not a pleasure chemical. Simply because an event triggers the release of dopamine doesn’t mean it is something we like or get pleasure from. In fact, when you pay close attention, you’ll notice that as soon as you obtain the expected reward, you’ll often feel empty and unfulfilled.

By continuously triggering the release of dopamine through different means—such as drug or alcohol consumption—addicts actually strengthen their tolerance to such stimulation. As a result, they need stronger and stronger stimulus to experience the same sensation of pleasure.

In a sense, instead of using the internet to find information or communicate with loved ones, the internet has become the one using you. It does so by hijacking your focus and making you unproductive and, as a result, restless.

This is where the food industry comes in. In this industry, marketers spend millions to encourage us to buy their products. They discovered that, by adding sugar (among other things), they can not only make the food more palatable, but they make us crave more. For this reason, if you look at the list of ingredients contained in any processed food, you’ll find sugar in most of them.

Dopamine and constant stimulation can impair your ability to think long term

Studies have shown that one of the best predictors of success is the ability to think long term. People who repeatedly focus on where they want to be in the future, make better decisions in the present. They tend to eat healthier food, be more productive at work and save and invest more money than others.

After extensive research into success, Dr. Edward Banfield of Harvard University concluded that long-time perspective, “was the most important determinant of financial and personal success in life.” He defined “long-time” as the “ability to think several years into the future while making decisions in the present.” Unfortunately, these days, focusing on our long-term goals isn’t an easy feat. Many external for...

By receiving constant feedback, whether through likes, comments, or immediate replies to our messages, we condition ourselves to expect fast results with everything we do. And this feeling is certainly reinforced through ads for schemes to help us “get rich quick”, and through cognitive biases (i.e., we only hear about the richest and most successful YouTubers, not about the ones who fail).

No, watching motivational videos all day long won’t help you reach your goals. But, performing daily consistent actions, sustained over a long period of time will. Staying calm and focusing on the one task in front of you every day will. The point is, to achieve long-term goals in your personal or professional life, you must regain control of your attention and rewire your brain to focus on the long term. To do so, you should start by staying away from highly stimulating activities.

Now, its founder, Jeff Bezos, could probably have made profits earlier, but, instead, he decided to reinvest in his business to create strong foundations that, he hoped, would enable Amazon to survive for decades. I encourage you to do the same in your personal and professional life. Build the foundations for success one brick at a time. Build them strong so that they won’t collapse at the first obstacle or setback.

Overstimulated, you find yourself unable to do the difficult things that would have the greatest positive impact on your life and on the lives of people around you.

Checking emails or news every thirty minutes gives you the illusion of having some control over your environment. You don’t want to miss an urgent email or the latest breaking news, right?

Trick #1—My mind convinces me going back to work is easy. Trick #2—My mind tells me I can do it later. Trick #3—My mind makes me believe that excitement is similar to fulfillment. Trick #4—My mind tells me opportunities are limited.

I also recommend you create a morning routine to help you start your day on a positive note and with a strong focus. Over the long term, a simple morning routine can make a massive difference in your life.

If I could complete only one task today before taking a month off, what would that task be?

productivity is nothing more than focusing on your most impactful tasks and doing so consistently.

your focus is worth a lot of money, which is why YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram do everything they can to keep you glued to your screen. However, your focus is also worth a lot of money to you.