In a world plagued by constant distractions, pop up notifications and a never-ending stream of calls, texts and to do’s, it can sometimes feel hard to live in the moment and concentrate on the tasks you have in front of you. If you suffer from this modern form of chronic connectivity induced mental lethargy, these tips could help!
Remove all distractions
This is probably the hardest thing you could ask any modern professional to do, but turning off the pop up notifications, silencing the smart phone and closing the email window are the first steps to reestablishing your mental focus and clarity. Unless you work in a field that requires you to answer your phone or text messages as a matter of life and death, you need to set aside time for you to get your work done without the constant interference of instant communication! So go ahead, turn your cell on silent, disable pop up notifications, set your office line to send all calls, remove your email from your active desktop and shut your office door if you have to!
Reason with yourself and others
If you have removed all distractions like suggested in step one, congratulations! I know that was probably difficult for you to do and you are probably freaking out inside just a little with fears of all the horrible things that may happen because people can’t get in touch with you. Well, that is simply not going to help you focus if your constantly worrying yourself about the unknown, so let’s be reasonable. I know as well as you do that you can’t go all day without answering the phone or responding to messages, so the next step to improving your focus is to carve out a time-table for how long you will work distraction free before returning to your email.
This part is up to you, but I suggest 2-3 hours of solid uninterrupted work, followed by a half hour or so of responding to emails, voice mails and messages. If you are worried that this could be too long for you and your specific job responsibilities, think about what is causing you to feel this way. If answering the phone is part of your job because, lets say, you’re a receptionist, than clearly you need to leave the phone on. However, if you are simply afraid that your boss or colleagues will be upset that they cannot contact you, I suggest letting them know in advance.
Even if your boss is a stickler for quick email responses, give them a call and tell them what your thinking. Let them know you have a lot on your plate and the constant messaging is starting to derail your productivity. If you let your boss and others know how long you will be disconnected and when they can reasonably expect a response for you, it will be much easier for them to swallow and they may even encourage this sort of behavior if they see a marked improvement in your work!
Leaving an out of office response on your email is also a good way to temper the expectations of others that depend on you. A simple message that explains that you are working on an important task or project but that you will be checking emails intermittently will give fair warning to those trying to contact you via email. You can do the same on your phone as well to ensure that everyone knows your busy but will be able to respond to their needs in a reasonable amount of time.
Have a plan of action
Once you are sufficiently distraction free you need to have a clear plan of attack for the work you want to accomplish. Make a list of everything you need to get done, ranking it in order of importance, urgency and time required. Making a list like this may require you to check some voice mails, print out a few emails and gather some information outside your office, but once you have your to do list ready, sit down and get to work!
Reward Yourself
Successfully sticking to a new plan or schedule is a hard thing to accomplish in and of itself. If the lure of improving your focus to get more work done isn’t enough of an incentive for you to stick to your plans, try giving yourself a more tangible reward. Perhaps it means a trip to Starbucks in the afternoon for a caffeinated pick me up or an extra stop on the way home to your local Redbox for a relaxing movie night. Whatever it is that will motivate you to stick to your action plan, commit to it, because eventually a new habit will form that will improve your focus in the long run!
xoxo,
This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on August 8th, 2013 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!
My biggest distraction at work is the location of my office. My position is a combined one, which includes Administrative Assistant duties, and I constantly have people walking by me or stopping to chat. We’re renovating soon, and that will hopefully stop. My boss understand how distracting it is for me.