The brain had a very big problem.

大腦出了很大的問題。

And this is actually, frankly, one of the most exhausting things you can do to your brain.

老實說，這其實是最耗費腦力的事情之一。

The metaphor I like to use that really is tied to the term you said, focus, is of a flashlight.

我喜歡用 "手電筒 "來做比喻，這個比喻與你說的 "專注 "一詞是相通的。

If you're in a darkened path, you know, you have this beautiful ocean view here, you want to go for a little walk in the evening, you might take a flashlight with you.

如果你在一條漆黑的小路上，你知道，這裡有美麗的海景，你想在傍晚出去散散步，你可能會帶上手電筒。

Why?

為什麼？

Because wherever it is that that flashlight is pointing, you're going to get privileged access to that information.

因為無論手電筒指向哪裡，你都將獲得獲取信息的特權。

So same thing with attention.

注意力也是如此。

When we attend to something, like right now, if I'm looking at your face, I'm getting granular information regarding your face.

當我們關注某件事情時，比如現在，如果我在看你的臉，我就會獲得關於你臉的細粒度資訊。

And everything else is sort of becoming fuzzy in the same way that wherever we point that flashlight, everything else is darkened around it.

其他一切都變得模糊不清，就像我們把手電筒對準哪裡，周圍的一切就會變暗一樣。

Same idea.

同樣的想法。

And that's a very active process that the brain is doing.

這是一個大腦非常活躍的過程。

The brain is enhancing the neural activity of the part of space I'm focusing on and actively suppressing everything else around it.

大腦會增強我所關注的那部分空間的神經活動，並積極抑制周圍的一切。

Yeah, that's good.

是啊，這很好。

So that part is, I think most people can understand the term focus is a very common thing.

是以，我想大多數人都能理解，"專注 "是一個非常普通的詞。

The cool thing about this flashlight, though, is it's not only about the external environment, but it's about the internal environment as well.

不過，這款手電筒最酷的地方在於，它不僅關乎外部環境，還關乎內部環境。

So if I say, think about what you had for dinner last night.

所以，如果我說，想想你昨晚吃了什麼？

Can you do that?

你能做到嗎？

I can.

我可以

You can do that, right?

你能做到的，對吧？

So what happened in that moment?

那一刻發生了什麼？

Before I said that, probably it was not on your mind.

在我這麼說之前，你可能並沒有想到這一點。

Oh, so good.

哦，太好了。

So you had it come to mind in your memory.

所以，你在記憶中想到了它。

And then basically, you were shining the flashlight on the memory.

基本上，你是在用手電筒照記憶。

And all of a sudden, it's in your conscious experience.

突然間，它就會出現在你的意識體驗中。

The focusing is one piece of the puzzle.

聚焦是拼圖的一部分。

But attention is this multifaceted component.

但注意力是一個多層面的組成部分。

And the other system is something I call the floodlight.

另一個系統我稱之為泛光燈。

And it really is formally called the alerting system of the brain.

它被正式稱為大腦的警報系統。

It's almost, you could say, the exact opposite of the flashlight.

可以說，它幾乎與手電筒完全相反。

Whereas the flashlight is narrow and selective, the floodlight is broad and receptive.

手電筒的範圍窄，選擇性強，而泛光燈的範圍廣，接受性強。

There is nothing you should be privileging.

沒有什麼是你應該享有的特權。

The only thing you're privileging is what is happening right now.

你唯一的特權就是現在正在發生的事情。

So you're privileging time.

所以，你把時間當成了特權。

Like right now, in this moment, what is the most important thing?

比如此時此刻，什麼才是最重要的？

And we use this system all the time.

我們一直在使用這個系統。

You're driving down the road.

你正在路上行駛。

You see a flashing yellow light near a construction zone or a weird traffic pattern.

您在施工區或奇怪的交通模式附近看到黃燈閃爍。

You know what that feeling is of broad and receptive.

你知道那種寬廣和樂於接受的感覺是什麼嗎？

I don't know what weirdness is going to happen.

我不知道會發生什麼怪事。

But I'm here for it because I might need to take action like that.

但我還是來了，因為我可能需要採取這樣的行動。

And now I'll be able to direct the flashlight where it's needed.

現在我就能把手電筒照到需要的地方了。

And then the third system, it's actually something called executive control.

第三個系統，實際上就是所謂的行政控制。

So the analogy I use there is a juggler.

所以，我用雜耍演員來做比喻。

So essentially, all the balls need to be in the air.

是以，從根本上說，所有的球都必須在空中。

As a leader in an organization, you know that you're not going to go in and do every task, but you need to make sure there's a rhythmicity, there's an appropriateness to all the things that are being done.

作為一個組織的領導者，你知道你不可能去做每一件事，但你需要確保所有的事情都有一個節奏性和適當性。

We need all three systems and they need to be functioning together fluidly.

我們需要所有這三個系統，它們需要流暢地共同運作。

Like they don't function at the same time.

就像它們不能同時發揮作用一樣。

In fact, technically in the brain, they battle each other for prominence.

事實上，從技術上講，它們在大腦中相互爭奪突出地位。

So you can't be in both a floodlight and a flashlight mode.

是以，你不能同時使用泛光燈和手電筒模式。

And we know this, right?

我們知道這一點，對嗎？

So you're immersed in reading something or listening to something.

所以，你沉浸在閱讀或聆聽中。

Somebody walks in the room and says your name.

有人走進房間，叫出了你的名字。

You're like, it takes you a second.

你會想，這需要一秒鐘的時間。

Because the floodlight is essentially being dampened down.

因為泛光燈基本上被減弱了。

The receptivity to the environment is dampened down.

對環境的接受能力受到抑制。

Is there such a thing as multitasking or is that a fallacy?

到底有沒有 "多任務處理 "這種說法，還是這只是一種謬論？

In other words, can the brain do more than one thing at one time?

換句話說，大腦能同時做多件事嗎？

If more than one thing is intentionally demanding, you cannot do more than one thing at one time.

如果有意要求做多件事，就不能同時做多件事。

The term multitasking is actually a myth.

多任務處理一詞實際上是一個神話。

The correct term would be task switching.

正確的說法應該是任務切換。

Task switching.

任務切換。

Yes.

是的。

So what you're doing, and this is actually, frankly, one of the most exhausting things you can do to your brain.

所以，你要做的，老實說，實際上是最耗費腦力的事情之一。

Is engage your attention and then have to disengage it, move it to the next thing, come back and move it over and over again. Yeah.

就是先吸引你的注意力，然後再分散注意力，把注意力轉移到下一件事上，然後再回來，一遍又一遍地轉移注意力。 沒錯

Okay.

好的

And when we ask, when we tell people this, you know, it's people always get it's like, yeah, it takes me a while to get back into the thing I was doing.

當我們問起，當我們告訴人們這些的時候，你知道，人們總是會說，是啊，我需要一段時間才能重新回到原來的狀態。

So don't do that to yourself.

所以，不要這樣對自己。

My main like guidance for people.

我主要喜歡為人們提供指導。

Don't have your alerts on when you're trying to actually do deep work and focus because you're disadvantaging your ability to actually do the task that you're trying to do.

當你試圖深入工作和集中精力時，不要開著警報器，因為這樣會影響你完成任務的能力。

I mean, if already the baseline is 50% and now you've got to deal with things pulling you away, the chances of it actually being successful are even reduced more.

我的意思是，如果基準線已經是 50%，現在你又要處理一些事情把你拉走，那麼真正成功的機率就更小了。