Audio books help with distraction

[Anonymous]

I have discovered that listening to audio books and podcasts on my “not an ipod” while I cook (for example) seems to help me avoid being distracted to the same extent as before. I have not boiled a pot dry since I started listening while I cook. Many other activities have taken on a more interesting presence too. Dog walking, cutting the lawn, cleaning, garden work, house repair, etc. are not quite the work they once were, and I am “reading” more books than ever.

Fortunately I can use the internet to download audio books from the local public library system. It does not have everything I want to “read” but the cost is right (free).

Stephen

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[allovertheplace]

I think this is great. I never thought of it as something to help keep me focused i.e. while cooking, but that totally makes sense. I tend to listen to non fiction audiobooks or lots of podcasts; I sometimes even listen to my favourite tv episodes (that I’ve already watched but really enjoy). I now even fall asleep with my iPod (and maybe that’s not the greatest thing…but it works).

The library is a great idea for downloads.

Do you have any favourite podcasts or books?

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[Anonymous]

I listen to audio books while driving, but I have rented them from the library on CD, so that’s why I was only using them while driving. I didn’t realize I could rent the electronic versions! Thanks!! I guess it makes sense, since I can get ebooks to my kindle, why not e-audio-books?

Man, I wonder if I will get any more cleaning done using this tip! Hmm.. probably not 😉 but I can dream.

To ditto allovertheplace, do you have any favorites? I have been listening to the Stephanie Plum series because it is so hilarious, but I’m always looking for recommendations!

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[Anonymous]

Podcasts that I like are mostly science related

Many good science podcasts can be found here:

http://www.sciencepodcasters.org/

A couple I enjoy, although TWIP should not to be discussed at the dinner table

This Week in Parasitism

Brain Science Podcast

RH Reality Cast, feminist podcast, makes me glad that I live in Canada

http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/realitycast

Computer security:

http://twit.tv/sn

Books I listen to tend to be the mystery/police fiction best seller authors like

Kathy Reichs

Lee Child

John Sanford

John Grisham

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[allovertheplace]

Awesome! I’ll have to check those out. Thanks stephen m for the heads up on TWIP! 😆

The fiction books sound good (the Stephanie Plum character sounds great), but I find my attention span for getting into a longer novel is not so good. So I tend to stick to non-fiction and things I can listen to in shorter bursts, or miss parts and it’s inconsequential. Or maybe I just haven’t found the right books?

For podcasts some that I like are:

Definitely Not the Opera (DNTO) CBC

Q the Podcast (CBC)

The Dean Blundell Show (warning: funny, oddly compelling, often politically incorrect and offensive but straight up he-is-who-he-is attitude)

The Mental Illness Happy Hour (not always happy, but stories of resilience, true life experiences, and honesty interjected with humour- the host is a comedian)- check out Rob Delaney’s episode for a great story

Attention Talk Radio (I think the latest episode is Rick Green!!)

Also, if there’s someone I’m really interested in i.e. an author etc., I search iTunes (which you don’t need an apple device for, you can have it on your computer) and find any podcasts or iTunes U sessions they have. It’s a great way to get lots of information straight from a source i.e. for ADHD John Ratey, Patricia Quinn both have great interviews on iTunes.

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[Anonymous]

@SayWhat I found a few Stephanie Plum series on my library’s system. Short, light, and definitely funny (cluck in a bucket, extra crispy).

Thanks

Stephen

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[Patte Rosebank]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer has heaps of radio shows, including new & vintage comedies & dramas, that you can listen to for one week after the original broadcast.

If you record the WaveOut stream as you listen, you can save it as an mp3, and listen to it whenever you like.

I have quite a collection, which I listen to when I’m spending hours applying thousands of rhinestones to a costume.  It occupies my brain just enough to keep me entertained, during this monotonous (but sparkly!) work.

 

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[sdwa]

When I had a working laptop, I would take it into the kitchen to play a news hour show I like while I was washing dishes, and that made the task a lot less boring. Usually I don’t like noise, don’t like the sound of TV or radio, but in that particular setting, I can see how listening to a story might be really great.

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[Wgreen]

For what it’s worth, I think creating audio-textbooks—not as a replacement for printed materials, but as a supplement—could be enormously helpful to many ADD kids (as well as other youngsters with reading disabilities). Apart from mitigating problems with reading comprehension, it keeps ADD eyes from wandering up, down, and across pages when they should be following the natural flow of the text (without skipping over half of it). Of course, everybody needs to learn how to glean information from printed pages. Reading comprehension is an important life skill, and practice makes perfect. Still, there’s a lot to learn in school, and kids need to take ownership of that information as efficiently as possible. Or so it seems to me.

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[Anonymous]

I’ve found that having my ipod/phone and earphones with some music really helps to keep me on task, but I just can’t listen to audiobooks. I read at least a couple thousand pages a week, but when I’ve tried audiobooks, I’ll get about 2 paragraphs in before I realize I’m already tuning out. I have an ipod dock in the kitchen, I tend to listen to talk radio, which I can follow, or just music which I kind of tune out and focus on the task. The talk shows seem to keep me near the kitchen so I don’t miss anything, as long as I don’t “escape” during an ad break and forget to come back.

While I’m reading actual books, though, I do need a quiet spot, so if the whole family is home I’ll put the headphones on with some ambient noise, like the “Relax With Nature” MP3’s.

In the car, I really work hard to focus on driving, not what’s on the radio. I’m fortunate to have grown up with a love of reading and the ability to do it well without too much effort. Also great that this has passed on to my son, who burns through books almost as fast as I do.

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[Patte Rosebank]

I’ll bet you wouldn’t tune-out of the audio-books I narrate.  They’re X-rated!

 

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[Anonymous]

Probably not, but really not my kind of book!

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[Patte Rosebank]

Confidentially, they’re not my cup of tea either, but they help to pay the bills.

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[Author]

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