Quick Tip No. 88: Managing Distractions

'Tis the season for even more distractions! During the busy holiday season it's even more important to keep distractions to a minimum. Start by creating a plan at the beginning of the day. By doing this, you will have a better sense of priority. Anything "urgent" can be assessed by returning to your plan to help you decide whether the matter needs your immediate attention.

Here are some common distractions that can easily take your focus and how to manage them:

• E-mail: Turn off your email. Or if it's email you are trying to get through, give yourself a time range that you will allot to email. Then work from the oldest to the newest messages. Do not allow incoming emails to distract you. Keep working through the oldest to the newest. Anything that does not need your attention immediately or needs more than two minutes of your time can be flagged or filed for later.
• Phone calls: Allow calls to go to voicemail. You can then alot time later to retrieve the voicemails and return calls. Just like with email, give yourself a time range. 
• Visitors: If the visitor just wants to chat, let him/her know that you'd love to chat but you really need to focus. People understand that. If it's something specific and doesn't need your attention right away, ask to schedule a meeting time. 
• Your own chaotic mind: Take some deep breaths to calm your mind. at this time of year, we've got plans to make, gifts to buy, events to attend. At the minimum, take 5-10 minutes to calm your mind by doing some deep breathing. Those few minutes will energize you and make you more productive. Sometimes it also helps to do a brain dump by writing down everything on your mind. Just write it out, it doesn't need to make sense, you don't need to edit. This is an exercise to clear your mind. When you're done, save it for later to look at or trash it and move on with your project.

Start applying at least one of these tips during the holidays and you'll soon start working them all into your daily work routine.

If you have have your own tips for managing distractions post a comment to share with everyone.

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