Graham Allcott returns with more good advice about...oh look, an ice cream van!
At work we face a myriad of distractions, getting in the way of what we're trying to achieve. Some of these distractions are an unavoidable fact of life, yet there are lots of these annoyances and temptations that you can do something about. Here are 10 ways to avoid distractions:
Get new ideas off your mind as quickly as possible
As you’re working on something, particularly if it’s less interesting than other parts of your work, you’ll hear that voice in your head coming up with new ideas and thinking about other things that need to be done. Capture all of these thoughts (so that you can come back to them later) with a pen and paper. The act of capturing and collecting this information will allow your mind to return to what you were working on. This is a much better strategy than trying to 'multi-task' and do these new things as they pop into your head.
Process email rather than check email
Email can be a big distraction, purely because your email inbox is constantly changing (and growing!). Doing email in batches, rather than spending all day in your inbox will help to bring additional focus. When you return to your inbox, process it to zero. This radically reduces background noise - and changes your habit so you're no longer tempted to go fiddling in your inbox looking for potential distractions!
Internet famines
The internet is single-handedly the biggest productivity tool and the biggest procrastination tool, all wrapped into one. Decide at which times of day you want access to a fantastic wealth of information and when you don’t. If you need to focus, find a meeting room or try disconnecting your internet connection - being offline occasionally can be truly wonderful and productive.
Selective ignorance
'Selective ignorance' is a term Tim Ferriss uses in his book, The 4-Hour Work Week. He describes the idea of avoiding ever buying newspapers or consuming unnecessary media. He 'shortcuts' this by asking his friends' trusted opinions so that he can make a good decision. It's important to realise that we are not superheroes, and that we need to be proactive about what information we avoid or shortcut as well as what we consume. Using this philosophy, you can collaborate with colleagues to keep each other up-to-date on company and industry news and use folders to automatically file away low-priority emails.
Don’t be an early adopter
It’s considered cool to be an early adopter. However, it is certainly not smart to be an early adopter. Let the crowd figure stuff out, then spend time asking them for their informed opinions before deciding to buy or use. Wait until someone you know can give you their enthusiastic tutorial. Until then, don't waste time learning from scratch unless you really need to.
Avoid most meetings you’re invited to
Meetings are a wonderful way to spend time indulging in other people’s priorities rather than your own. Is the meeting directly concerned with your major projects or areas of responsibility?
Where possible, just say 'no'.
Don’t answer your phone
Phone calls are amongst the worst interruptions. They cost you time and energy, both in dealing with them and in ‘recovering’ from them (those, 'Oh, where was I again?' conversations that you have to have with yourself once you’re off the call).
When you need to concentrate, turn off your mobile phone and set your desk phone to automatic answer machine (Unless you work on reception, or are waiting for an important phone call, of course!).
Also, voicemail is seriously underrated as a communication medium. The caller gets to the root of the issue in seconds rather than in minutes, and by the time you call them back, you’re both halfway through the conversation that needs to happen. Make voicemail the medium itself, rather than viewing it as the by-product of a 'failed' call.
Wear headphones or have a visual symbol to keep colleagues’ questions at bay
Some people place a particular item on their desk when they don’t want to be disturbed, but perhaps the simplest and most effective is a big pair of headphones.
You can drown out the office hubbub with music and it’s kind of obvious to the person interrupting you that they’re breaking your flow.
Work from home, or from somewhere else
The best way to be sure that you won’t be interrupted and distracted by all the noises and annoyances of the office is to be somewhere other than the office, for example working on trains or in coffee shops. There’s nothing to do but drink coffee and do your work!
Remember the 80-20 rule
80% of your impact will come from 20% of your efforts. And 80% of the things you're asked to read, consider or drop everything to do will be things that only add relatively small amounts of value. Be very choosy about what you drop everything to read, investigate or do anything with. 'Scanning the horizons' can take a lot of time and effort, whereas letting the more important things come to you is much easier.
Graham Allcott is the author of "How to be a Productivity Ninja" and founder of Think Productive, a training company specialising in productivity, time management and email training.
