Please stop talking

Yesterday I went to a spin class outside my normal rotation. The instructor was great, the workout a challenging one that included several tough "hill climbs" and speed work through "flats."

But there were two women in the back of the room who chatted for nearly the entire class. The instructor asked them to be quiet but they chatted away. Proper spin class etiquette -- you don't talk during class. It disrupts other people trying to get in a good workout and can throw off the instructor. Frankly, it's just rude.

So I was annoyed. But I didn't let it ruin my training for the day. Instead, when it bothered me, I made a mental note, said a few choice words in my head and got back to the business at hand -- focusing on the bike.

The ability to focus on what I'm doing in the midst of chaos will be a key element to surviving the triathlon, where I'll have to deal with people bumping into me on the swim and a zillion other little things, like finding my bike in transition with a horde of other people.

Focusing in chaos has not been one of my stronger personality points. But it is getting better and not just in spin class. Last night I covered the women's basketball game between UConn and Syracuse in the Carrier Dome. Put the No. 1 team in the country with a small, but demanding, traveling media corps in UConn against an up-and-coming program with a growing fan base in Syracuse and the general atmosphere is pure craziness.

Add in press row seating on the baseline, behind three rows of Syracuse men's basketball players, cheerleaders behind you, dance team in front of you and one guy who still won't stop complaining that there was no media meal before the game and suddenly there's plenty to distract you from the task at hand -- watching, recording and evaluating the game.

I don't now if I'll ever get into that zone where I'm so focused I don't notice my surroundings. Heck, I'm not sure that's exactly what I want to achieve anyway.

But I am getting better at honing that distinction between observant and distracted which will serve me well in multiple areas of my life.