There are hundreds of decoys and distractions jumping in the front seat of your life and they will take over the steering wheel if you allow them. They always promise extraordinary results and outstanding effects, but what they really do is keep you from doing important things and achieving your big goals. You have no choice but to eliminate distractions if you have dreams and aspirations to attain.
There are several ways these distractions can be managed and eliminated when you’re at work.
1. Remove Bad Habits
Manage your life habits by resting well, eating a healthy diet, and exercising to boost your energy. Turn off the TV, or better yet, move it to a less frequented room. Set up a bedtime routine, which will help you sleep well.
These simple actions will give you a clearer mind and energy to do your work while also eliminating bad habits. They will make you appreciate relaxation and physical wellness. The negativity voices from the media vultures won’t reach you as easily once you get to know the state of blissful health and clarity.
Remember, you won’t get very far in a broken machine. You’ll need it well-oiled and ready for a challenge to avoid feeling overwhelmed and losing focus. Being an achiever in the long-term is what you want, but burning out quickly is what you get without sleep, a healthy diet, and exercise.
2. Declutter Your Mind
A cacophony of voices, text messages, tweets, sales pitches, and bold headlines fight for your attention. You hear a song on the radio hit list, and you can’t hear your own voice over its continuous replay in your head.
The first thing you should do is notice that you’re running on autopilot. The next natural step is to turn it off. It’s not easy to fight your default mechanism at first, but with practice and mindfulness, you can overcome it and eliminate distractions from your racing mind.
Start exercising your impulse-control, and focus on the here and now. Writing that report will go much easier if you enter the state of flow.
3. Clarify Your Day Before You Start
In the morning, before your workday begins, dedicate a few minutes to managing your schedule. A great way to do it is by applying the Covey time management matrix. Have a moment to set your priorities and determine which tasks are truly vital and urgent that day, which are not so urgent but still very important, and which you should avoid, either by delegating or eliminating them altogether.
This last type of task may be tricky because they will often be urgent, though uninspiring, issues, like questions from colleagues concerning their problems, phone calls, and emails that you answer by default, only because you’ve always done it and that’s the way it’s always been.
Instead, take control and make a conscious decision of what you’re going to when they come knocking. Once you’ve made it, hold on to it, and ruthlessly follow through.
4. Prepare Your Workplace
When you’re facing a lengthy or complex task involving concentration, prepare your place of work so that you can avoid and eliminate distractions and won’t need to take unnecessary breaks[1]. Empty the wall in front of you to keep your mind on track. Photos, prints and various knick-knacks you like to display may be cute, but they will make your mind wander.
Declutter your office and desk to enable the free flow of energy. Also, cater to your physical needs; make sure you have some water and a light snack around in case you feel thirsty or hungry. It’s good for your body and spares you the trip to the nearest vending machine with high-calorie snacks that are heavy on your waist.
5. Zen Your Computer
The first and most obvious distraction is the incessant stream of incoming email. You can see it on your desktop and hear a signal every time there’s a new message. Curiosity always wins, so eliminate distractions like these by turning off notifications and getting rid of unnecessary apps.
For other distractions, you can block certain sites using online software if the sites are just too tempting. Staying focused during your work day will get much easier when it’s distraction free.
This is one of the best ways to manage distractions, but for more insight, you can check out this Fast Track Class: Overcoming Distractions.
6. Set Your Time
Don’t forget about the second most important element of our puzzle here: time. Setting time slots for individual tasks makes them more substantial and less elusive. After you sit down at your desk, write a list of tasks with time allotment.
Don’t sweat if you run a little late with your schedule; it’s solely for a bit of orientation and to help you with future planning. This habit makes your day finite and grounds your workload in it, so you’re able to keep track of every moment and avoid procrastination.
7. Solidify Your Attitude
To avoid and eliminate distractions, manage your approach to the task. The “act as if…” approach works nicely. It is simple: pretend you’re being watched and your task is approaching the deadline.
It has been proven that our performance improves significantly if we know we’re being observed and assessed, so act as if you’re being watched and evaluated, as you likely will be at some point.
8. Close the Door
Stephen King, the master of American horror and a very diligent, prolific writer, gives this advice in his book On Writing. If you can’t close the door literally, do it figuratively. Tell everyone that you’re busy for a certain period of time and ask them not to disturb you.
If you work all the time you’re at work instead of chatting with coworkers, you’ll gain a lot of time, which will let you move much faster and achieve even more. This also involves turning off your phone or muting it when you want to focus.
9. Manage Your Tasks
You need to deal with big tasks first. They may be overwhelming and discouraging, so what you need to do is break them up to smaller chunks. It also helps to assign an amount of time to each bit of work so you know how long it will take and can plan your time accordingly.
Take it one step at a time and don’t let fears and worries distract you from your work. To get that problem out of your way, do the opposite: compile and put together a bunch of minor assignments and complete them all in a row. It’s especially effective if the tasks are of similar nature, like money transfers, phone calls, or a pile of invoices to input.
Final Thoughts
Einstein once defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If you just go on with your usual routine and forget what you’ve learned today, you may fail to eliminate distractions at work.
What can you do right now to apply at least one piece of advice from this article and eliminate the biggest distractions? Do your best to develop your ability to focus on what’s in front of you and improve more each day.
More on Eliminating Distractions
- 7 Most Common Distractions at Work (And How to Tackle Them)
- How to Not Get Distracted: 10 Practical Tips to Sharpen Your Focus
- How to Use Deep Work to Wipe out Distractions And Boost Productivity
Featured photo credit: Brooke Cagle via unsplash.com
