OK. I know I’m supposed to be pretty good at productivity and all, but I am having a REALLY hard time today getting focused so that I can get at least SOMETHING done.
So instead of fighting the distractions today, I decided to go with the flow, and blog the distractions in the hopes they will then leave me alone. *Fingers crossed*
Is this the first time I have felt this way? Hell no, that’s why I write a home business blog - because this is something we have to battle all of the time. And this seemingly tame list of distractions might look innocuous - but just you wait until they get a grip on your day…
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Kids - We work at home to get more time with them, but whether they are fighting over the TV or sweetly pleading for mom time (usually to get out of chores), kids certainly know how to get our attention away from work.
Solution :: Rules, structure, boundaries, and ear plugs.
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Household Chores - I don’t know about you, but I’m not exactly what you would call a good housekeeper. And although working in a mess drives me nuts, if I spent my days cleaning up after three kids I’d never get anything done. It took me several years to get the hang of working when the house was messy.
Solution :: You just have to block it out of your mind with all of your might, or hire a maid!
~ -
Nice Weather - Spring days, summer fun, autumn walks and winter sun always make me want to be outside to enjoy it. And I can tell many of you feel the same way as I watch seasonal traffic patterns emerge on the site.
Solution :: Schedule fun time, blow off that last task, or get a laptop and work outside!
~ -
Fridays - Maybe it’s because I used to have a 4 day a week office job, but Fridays are always my least productive day of the week. Again, since it’s also the slowest traffic day of the week, I know you share my love of the three day weekend!
Solution :: Save fun and unimportant tasks for Fridays so that you either have something to look forward to, or it doesn’t matter if it doesn’t get done.
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TV - This isn’t so hard for me because I don’t watch a lot of TV - but on the days my hubby works from home I can guarantee you he’s not cold calling from the bedroom while I can hear Judge Judy in the background.
Solution :: Turn it off.
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Internet and Email - Even for those of us who make a living online, the internet can be both a blessing and a curse - there are still days when I find myself following a blog link to a news story to another news story…
Solution :: Work offline most of the day (I don’t know if I am quite there yet, myself!)
~
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Tech Issues - There is no help desk to call when you are self employed. I can’t tell you how many days have been lost troubleshooting things - and I hear the same from readers every week.
Solution :: Sometimes it just pays in productivity to pay someone else to fix things.
~ -
Home Improvement Projects - For those of us who like to work on household projects, I always try to ensure these projects are both started and finished on the weekends. But this isn’t always possible - and those unfinished things can just drive you crazy, especially if they are disruptive to the day like a major remodel.
Solution :: Get out of the house, because I don’t have a solution for this one other than avoiding it!
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Holidays - Yeah, I know. We aren’t supposed to work on holidays. But it doesn’t justify taking the whole month of December off, either. This is probably one of the most challenging things for the work at home parent, but it can put a big dent in reaching your goals.
Solution :: Discipline, discipline, discipline.
~ -
Harry Potter - Between intriguing chapter leaks, reading movie reviews, and constant hints and clues, I seriously can’t take it anymore.
Solution :: There is none, other than giving in to temptation. I know, I’m a dork.
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Wow, you read my mind!
Today I have been reading Harry Potter stuff on the internet, checking email every few seconds, and checking my web / blog / eZine stats every few minutes.
One of my secrets is to pick two things each day that I will do first, for the first 2 hours I work (9-11 am). Today that was finish up and launch a new blog, and send out an email promotion to my list.
So, even though I wasted a bunch of time, at least I got those two things done.
Elizabeth
Have you been looking over my shoulder?
Seriously, I am guilty of each and every one of these distractions (and probably a few that you haven’t thought of). Thanks for making the list and letting WAHMs know that they aren’t facing these distractions alone.
Oh my, this applies to Work at Home Aunties too! I can really attest to #1 as my 2 year old niece would usually drag me away from my desk. How aptly put!
Cheers, Ellesse
Oooops, my biggest enemy: No. 10 and 6 and No.11 - sleepiness…
We seriously live parallel lives! These are all the distractions I deal with daily - especially when the kids are home on summer break. I have had to get pretty creative with my time and have done a lot more early morning (5:30-8:30) hours just to get a few good hours in.
See, I dream of the day that I make enough money from home to hire a cleaning service. I can’t stand a mess but I’m terrible at chasing dust bunnies!
I must have an addictive personality (I’ve heard you can have this) because when I check my e-mail first, before starting my real tasks, then it can be who knows how long before I get them. Sometimes it isn’t until the computer is shutting down that I rememeber I never did what I turned it on for in the first place…
The internet news/blog item you identified - it’s all too easy to rationalize as “research” for blog ideas, and/or networking to support my site… but all too often, it’s not. I think the key is the intention!
Great summary - good suggestions. I’ve never managed to work effectively offline either.
Outside distractions too, like a lawn mower or cars on the road. Glad I don’t have any issues with #1!
#11. Food. The fridge is a few steps away, the grocery store a quick drive. Anything with sugar and fat (AKA extra tasty) means bonus distraction.
Awesome write-up, Wendy.
I’ve been learning more about Tim Ferriss and his 4 Hour Work Week concepts. One of the things I like so far is his suggestion with email:
Don’t check email first thing in the morning because if you find something troubling, it can often hinder accomplishing your tasks for the day.
Also, check and respond to email twice per day. Try it. I get more done on the days that I do this. And it’s not hard. You could even check your email more often, but the idea is to check it, respond to what’s important and then shut it down. You shut it down so it’s not sitting there tempting you with interruptions.
Really, give this a try. And if it doesn’t work, go back to what you were doing.
The biggest distractions for me are random surfing and the urge to play with the kids.
Random surfing is dangerous when you haven’t done anything yet.
I find that I have to restrain myself from playing with the kids when I haven’t finished what needs to be done. Once I start playing with them I forget about everything else.
I haven’t even begun reading my book and I got it Saturday, afraid once it is done it’ll be over. You nailed me on everything else…but ya left out one thing. Since it is summer time, sometimes we are stalled by the “in-laws.” hehe, I had them this weekend and later this week.
I can relate to all of these except 1 & 10….and I seem to be very successful at distracting myself, especially when I’m online.
In fact, I really like your idea (6) of working offline….there is absolutely no reason that I couldn’t write my content offline until it comes time to insert links in my posts. I’d be much more productive I think. Thanks Wendy!