Need to upskill, but unable to concentrate: Advice needed

[bubusam13]

Hi, with AI becoming such a big focus now, I really need to upskill to stay relevant. Luckily, my employer provides access to a lot of learning platforms, so resources aren’t an issue.

The problem is—I just can’t seem to focus. It’s not just distractions… I’m struggling to even sit at my desk for 5 minutes and actually study.

Any simple tips or tricks to improve focus would really help.
(And I used AI to articulate it... Shhh!)

 

[patkim]

So what if you again pass this above text to ChatGPT? What scripted response you get!!

 

[bubusam13]

I dont need an AI response.

 

[Desmond]

Do you think you have symptoms of ADHD? It's also likely that all the social media has reduced your attention span, some time away from it should help you in the long run.

As for your actual question, you pretty much answered yourself, just learn whatever is relevant on sites like Udemy, Coursera, etc. Just remember that an AI is just a brain without a body, it can't really do anything on it's own. How effectively it works depends on how well you instruct it and for that you need domain knowledge which the AI won't have.

What career are you in, BTW?

 

[patkim]

Consult a psychiatrist...they might have medication that prevents you from thinking too much or not concentrating on one thing at a time!!!

 

[bubusam13]

Do you think you have symptoms of ADHD? It's also likely that all the social media has reduced your attention span, some time away from it should help you in the long run.

As for your actual question, you pretty much answered yourself, just learn whatever is relevant on sites like Udemy, Coursera, etc. Just remember that an AI is just a brain without a body, it can't really do anything on it's own. How effectively it works depends on how well you instruct it and for that you need domain knowledge which the AI won't have.

What career are you in, BTW?

ADHD- right question. I must closely observe for symptoms. I am not much into social media but YouTube shorts have highly increased my screen time. I go to watch some use video and then get stuck in shorts. I am trying to find some workaround.
I am working as an EA.

Consult a psychiatrist...they might have medication that prevents you from thinking too much or not concentrating on one thing at a time!!!

Thank you.

 

[TheSloth]

Yes, a consult with professional is always good.

I think this problem attention span is an epidemic. From 60 year old to 3 year olds, glued to the screen only out of habit, not even watching anything interesting but looking for something interesting.
I have had several episodes which makes me irritable all the time, a small discomfort seems like a big pain and I want to go back to my Reddit scroll. When I end up at this stage, i realize this myself since I have other responsibilities to take care of and I cannot slack anymore, I uninstall Reddit. I still go to browser, login there and scroll but significantly less than what I would do when app is installed.
My flow always break because whenever I need to buying something, I end up going to Reddit in search of user reviews, and slowly I also go back to scrolling. Then rinse and repeat.
Hope my struggle gives you some clue on how to fight this problem. and if you find it, please share with us, it will surely help.

For courses. I have been thinking myself about this. Domain knowledge is given as much importance now as tech, like Desmond said!
In my office, everyone is doing something (extra) with AI, they are brain storming use cases and trying to solve some problem. I just don't have the strength of going through all tech courses anymore, sigh. So I am thinking to just read some books which will help me understand System Design or Architecture and come up with some better solutions.
But if you want to do something with AI, Agentic AI seems hot topic nowadays? with multiple MCPs configured, you can just chat away the bug fixes with AI. I am scared tbh.

I am looking for guidance myself on how to survive now.

 

[Desmond]

You could try to implement some sort of AI automation. Try implementing an AI app that integrates with Jira or Confluence and helps you design solution or implement code, depending on what your role is.

 

[bubusam13]

Yeah, I’ll probably consult a professional, I just wanted to see if this is something I can fix myself first. I kind of feel like I already know the reasons, but was curious to hear what others think. I even thought of posting this on Reddit, but decided to ask here instead.

I’m basically glued to screens all day—not just for work, but everything else too… staying in touch with family, ordering groceries, even self-learning. With traffic and pollution outside, I end up spending most of my time indoors.

I design solutions for clients across infra, data, and automation. And now with AI being the buzzword, almost every client wants something “AI-driven,” even if it’s not really needed, it makes them happy