Attention and sustainable work in a distracted world
Insights|January 30, 2026
At our recent networking event dedicated to assistants we have worked closely with, the conversation moved from the everyday realities of professional services to a bigger question: how do we protect focus, performance, and well-being in a world built to distract us?
Alongside reflections on collaboration and the evolving role of support functions, neuroscientist and CEO Veera Virintie from Focus Tiger zoomed out to the brain science behind attention, multitasking, stress, and recovery. Together, their message was clear: sustainable, high-quality work depends on both strong collaboration and smarter habits around focus.
The unseen backbone of professional work
One of the starting points of the discussion was the role of assistants and support professionals in demanding knowledge-driven environments. In organizations with high turnover and constant pressure, assistants often provide continuity, perspective, and practical judgment that keep work moving forward.
Rather than functioning as purely administrative support, their role increasingly resembles a partnership built on shared responsibility for time, priorities, and quality.
Key reflections included
• Assistants hold deep institutional knowledge that stabilizes teams
• They help transfer professional standards to new colleagues
• They play a central role in prioritization and time protection
• Effective collaboration directly supports better focus and outcomes
“At some point you realize that nothing works without someone holding the overview,” Veera said. “That’s what makes demanding work sustainable.”
Veera Virintie“A wandering mind is not a flaw.”
Why focus feels so fragile today
Veera then shifted the discussion to the brain itself. Humans, she reminded the audience, are still operating with the same brains they had thousands of years ago. From an evolutionary standpoint, today’s work environment is radically new.
According to Veera, focus is not a nice-to-have. It is the foundation for learning, completing tasks, and being genuinely present with other people.
Key points included
• Learning requires sustained attention before information can enter memory
• Focus is essential for finishing work and creating value
• Attention does not improve automatically and must be trained
• Stress and poor sleep significantly weaken focus and memory
“A wandering mind is not a flaw,” she said. “It’s the brain’s default setting. The skill is noticing it and bringing attention back.”
Multitasking and the illusion of efficiency
A recurring theme was multitasking and why it feels productive even when it is not. Veera explained that humans cannot perform two cognitively demanding tasks at the same time. What we usually call multitasking is rapid task switching.
That switching comes with a cost
• Productivity decreases and tasks take longer
• Interruptions wipe out working memory
• Stress accumulates and recovery slows
“It often feels efficient in the moment,” Veera said, “but over time it quietly erodes our ability to think clearly and concentrate.”
Recovery is not something to postpone
Another key insight was that recovery cannot be saved for vacations. While time off is important, it does not undo daily overload if everyday work habits remain unchanged.
Instead, Veera emphasized small, frequent recovery moments during the workday
• Stepping away from screens between meetings
• Short walks or brief social interactions
• Avoiding phone scrolling as a default break
“The brain doesn’t reset once or twice a year,” she said. “It needs small moments of recovery built into every day.”
What this means in practice
The discussion concluded with practical reflections that apply across roles and organizations
• Protect uninterrupted focus as a shared responsibility
• Clarify expectations around response times and urgency
• Build short recovery breaks into the workday
• Practice doing one thing at a time whenever possible
• Recognize that good collaboration is a prerequisite for focus
The overall message was reassuring. Struggling with focus is not a personal failure. It is a predictable outcome of modern work colliding with human biology. With better structures, clearer norms, and more conscious habits, both performance and well-being can improve.