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How I’m Eliminating … Okay, Minimizing Distractions and Getting More Done

Posted By Darren Rowse 20th of April 2011 Miscellaneous Blog Tips 0 Comments

Today I asked my followers on Twitter what their biggest challenge as a blogger was. There were hundreds of responses but the word that stood out to me time and time again was “time.”

Finding time to blog is something most of us struggle with at one point or another, if not every day. So today I thought I’d share a strategy that I used this week to keep me on track (one that actually worked!).

Get off Farmville!

Okay, so Farmville isn’t a problem for everyone, but I suspect that we all have an equivalent distraction (or two). I have a few: Twitter can be my Farmville, so can Instagram, so can any kind of Tower Defence game on my iPhone. A stroll down to the lounge room to wrestle with my kids could be another… the list could go on.

None of these things are evil. Some, in fact, could be useful and a part of your business (which blurs the line and makes it hard, because you can start out being productive and end up wasting your time). However they all can take us away from what we really know we should be focusing upon.

Ultimately, it comes down to knowing what distracts you and eliminating it (or at least putting boundaries around it).

That’s easier said than done, of course, so today I want to let you in on something I did recently in a week where I needed to be super-extra productive and eliminate distraction.

Here’s What I’ve Been Doing to Eliminate Minimize Distractions

I wrote this on the whiteboard that sits in front of me:

fb83fb221999444c992e394c11c902bb_7.jpeg

Okay, it’s not the sexiest productivity tip I could give. It’s not an app to keep you on track, and it certainly hasn’t emerged from any kind of research I’ve done into productivity.

It’s just two questions that I decided to ask myself constantly this week in an attempt to keep me on track and away from those time-sucking distractions that pull me away from those things that I know I need to achieve.

Why did I do it?

My reason for asking these questions was simply that I realized that I needed to challenge myself to question my decisions about the way I spend my time. You see, I find that if I don’t do it, my day simply evolves form one thing to another—and many of the activities aren’t that productive.

For example, let’s look at Twitter. Twitter can be a great way to spend your time if you’re a blogger. It can help you research articles to write about, it can be great for networking with others in your niche, and it can be great for driving traffic for your blog (amidst other great stuff). But it can also be a time-suck—it can be responsible for your day completely disappearing.

Asking “Why are you doing that?” as I look up from TweetDeck forces me to think about what I’m doing on Twitter at that moment and whether it’ll take me closer to or further away from my objectives as a blogger.

Answering it leaves me with a few options:

  1. I realize that I’m wasting my time and I do something else that’s more productive.
  2. I realize that I’m not using it effectively and refocus upon using Twitter to move towards my goals.
  3. I realize that yes, I’m using Twitter well and keep going.

The problem with this approach is that I tend to lie to myself at times. I suspect we all do…

“Of course I’m using Twitter productively right now. I’m … errr … building relationships with people … and … um … networking … and getting better at communicating in short sentences … and honing my … social media skills…”

We’re pretty good at justifying anything we want to do, aren’t we? Or am I the only one?

So I ask myself the same question, but a little differently: “Do you need to?”

I know I’m sounding like my mother, but perhaps she was onto something. Again, the question makes me consider how I’m using my time, and I either change what I’m doing, or keep going accordingly.

Lastly is the “Really?” question, which again is a little parental. But it’s often at this point, having challenged myself three times, that I realize I’m fooling nobody—I really need to snap out of it and get back on track.

I’m not saying that I’ve not been distracted this week at all (you’d only need to check my Instagram and Twitter streams to know that’s not the case) but what I have found is that by simply asking myself through the day about how I’m spending my time, I’ve been more focused and more intentional about how I do spend my time.

That’s what’s working for me. How about you? How do you keep on track and stay focused upon what you need to get done?

About Darren Rowse
Darren Rowse is the founder and editor of ProBlogger Blog Tips and Digital Photography School. Learn more about him here and connect with him on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Comments
  1. Love your whiteboard message, Darren.

    I’ve tried a number of tech tools to lock myself out of tempting sites like Twitter and/or to turn my screen into one big writing surface, without desktop distractions, but none of that has worked for me personally.

    As the very insightful Chris Garrett says, not all distractions come from outside ourselves! Turning off the phone, etc., can only shut out the external distractions, but the mind that’s avoiding a task (for whatever reason) will find a way to do so! A big whiteboard reminder like this one, however, may very well be all the kick in the motivation that’s needed to get back on track.

    Thanks for the tip!

    • Great quote, he is right, whats in our mind can’t be turned off. This has inspired me a lot, thanks. Even psychologist will fails on this one.

  2. Hah, love the board! This is so true and fortunately, I am not like that. However, a few months ago, I did use to see all the cool features these social medias have and then experiment and see that I’ve been doing it for hours and haven’t actually worked on my site! Now, I could do all that I need to in around 2 hours but of course, with all the content and so much to read, it is almost impossible.

  3. That’s a really nice thing to do i.e. writing on a white board & following it properly. It really increases productivity.

  4. For me, that would be more useful as my desktop wallpaper. I think I have my productivity / goof off ratio balanced out pretty well, because we all have to have a little distraction from work, work, work sometimes. It’s just a matter of not letting those distraction take over. Hence, if you haven’t already, don’t try Farmville. :)

  5. A really great book on the subject is Focus by Leo Babauta (creator of Zen Habits). I just finished publishing a 5-part review:

    http://www.eugeneyiga.com/archive/

  6. Love your message to yourself! I do something similar, pretending someone is watching over my shoulder. Or I imagine that I’ve said to someone “I have xx thing I have to get done,” and if I get distracted I imagine how sheepish I’d feel if they noticed I wasn’t working on that one thing! Of course, actually telling someone else your plan and having them hold you accountable also helps–it doesn’t all have to be imaginary. :)

  7. I think I’ll paint that saying on my wall. With all the social media and new tools….um..toys, it is easy to get distracted. Just turning off my email helps when I need to focus on writing or working on my sites. If I don’t, the latest tweet or FB update leads me astray. There’s just too many unexplored links and great advice; like this one.

  8. Yes its hard to stay on tasked…but you must be mentally stable to get things done. It come down to you being successful are just being another blogger..

    “Black Seo Guy “Signing Off”

  9. I use a daily To Do List to help keep me on track. I start my day out, jotting down all the things I have to do, when I will tackle them, and how long they should take me. I know it is old school and anal, but working full time with 3 kids and trying to blog/network, it’s the only thing that has worked for me.

  10. Hi Darren,

    Thanks for this very useful post. I get distracted myself very often. And you are bang on target when you say that social networking games are one of the most distracting activities. It sometimes seems as if you get addicted to such things.

    And what could be the best way to get rid of them? Ask the very basic question – WHY AM I DOING THIS. Again you hit the soft spot with this approach. Thanks again.

    Deepak

  11. I so much enjoyed this article, as I have been thinking lately that because work is so much more concentrated to being on the internet and using Twitter and Facebook, it’s really easy to check out that one YouTube video, or play farmville, etc. It’s easier to say, well what’s 2 or 3 minutes here and there, when sometimes it ends up being a whole half hour. Thanks for the tips and methods for holding myself accountable!

  12. I read someplace years ago “once a while we need to do some house-cleaning” and that rooted in me ever since. This applies to a lot of things in our lives, including relatives and friends.. Hope I got the message through?

    Cheers

  13. I’ve been reading the book “Getting Things Done” by David Allen, which has been helpful to me in being more productive. Warning: it’s not a quick read – it’s more a STUDY, but the concepts David goes over are practical and have helped me change some of my processes during the day.

    I agree, EFFECTIVE TIME MANAGEMENT has been crucial to my success (or failure) as a self-employed entrepreneur. If I’ve planned out my day and organize things effectively, I get SO MUCH MORE DONE and feel so good about what I’m doing.

    However, if I waste time “networking” on Facebook or Twitter and then try to justify all the time I’ve spent dinking around, I feel discouraged and ready to go back to “Corporate America” where they actually will PAY YOU to be unproductive most of the time :)

    Thanks for the post that will help me recommit today to be productive!

  14. For me, Farmville is Email and Twitter.

    And as Rebecca states above, when I am avoiding a task I tend to check my email and Twitter feed every ten minutes or so. It’s as if I want to be distracted.

    The first step for me was becoming aware that I was so distracted. Then I was able to take steps to eliminate (okay… minimize) the distractions. :)

    For the email problem, I found that by turning off the beeping sound that Outlook makes when a new email arrives, I dramatically cut down on the distraction. I was like Pavlov’s dog. When Outlook would ding, I would salivate. :)

    I’m still working on Twitter. Perhaps a white board message that says “Get your lazy butt off of Twitter. Really!” would work for me. :)

    Thanks for writing this Darren!

  15. Great post, thanks! I used to be completely addicted to Mafia Wars. Then one day I got fed up with all the annoying advertisements and strategies they use to get you to buy things, so I deleted my account without thinking twice. For about a week I felt like something terrible had happened lol, but afterwards I quickly forgot all about it.

  16. Yea getting time for blogging is an issue these days,either we have to compromise with the studies or with the fun.

  17. Loving these simple pieces of advice that make all the difference. Good post.

  18. I’ve found that asking myself similar questions has improved my productivity too. I also write a schedule of what I plan to do the next day the night before. I get a whole lot more done this way than planning things as I go.

  19. wow its a nice post thanks man!

  20. Mary Ann Loesch says: 04/20/2011 at 2:39 am

    Great post. I’m a list maker. Every Sunday I set up a spreadsheet for the week.

  21. If I could stop all the voices in my head, I’m sure I would find blogging much easier.

  22. This post is so very helpful. I managed to get my act together since I only have 1.5 hours to blog. This is my daughter’s nap time. With such time restraints, I don’t have time to waste playing around (unless I really want to).

  23. I placed a 100 friend limit for myself on Facebook. It sounds antisocial but it helps with time management!…

  24. Darren this is something I’ve been thinking about lately too. Actually I’m working on a guest post right now about eliminating distractions while writing.

    Other ways I’ve found is to keep your workspace clean. That way you’re not distracted by what’s on the table nor get the impulse to start cleaning it just to procrastinate what you’re doing.

    I’ll admit my workspace is NOT clean and it distracts me so I found that tip to be relevant for me.

  25. Recently I’ve been struggling with being more productive as well. Since I opened my blog, I find myself surfing the web and reading, instead of writing. Thanks for your post. It shows that I really need to get rid of these distractions.

  26. I approach time management the same way many approach money management — with envelopes. Let me explain…

    Most people have heard about the envelope method of budgeting money. That is, you keep an envelope for each of your monthly expenses and determine how much money should be in each envelope to cover that expense for the month. Then, when you get paid, you divvy up your money between the envelopes appropriately. Throughout the month, you spend the money as needed and when an envelope is drained, you either (a) stop spending in that category and do without or (b) “steal” money from one of your other envelopes.

    We all have 24 hours in a day. When it’s gone, it’s gone. So, I have a simple little system which helps me identify those things I want to devote time to, determine how much time each will receive in my week and then divvy up my weekly schedule into blocks of time (my “time envelopes”).

    Unless I determine *ahead of time* how my hours will be spent, like you mentioned Darren, I have a hard time keeping on track. Certainly there are time-sucks which are clear (like Farmville), but for me, it’s the stuff that can be justified that cause a bigger problem, like answering questions from potential clients. I mean, a potential client is a good thing to devote time to, but there does come a point when I simply have to stop and move on. I was just tired of the super important things falling through the cracks because the semi-important things were creeping in.

  27. Sometimes very simple is the way to go. I think the whiteboard method would work well for me too – I have so many alarms and reminders going off on my computer, iPad, mobile phone that distract me throughout the day!

  28. Great post Darren. How did you know I have the same problem? Thanks for sharing your solutions to managing time wisely. For me, I read about time management and jot all I need to do a day before. Learn more here; http://www.entrepreneurshipsecret.com/improving-time-management-skills-contd/

  29. Love this post… it’s simplicity. I’m totally gonna copycat the whiteboard. LOL.

  30. What a great tip Darren. Very simple but effective.

    I have been trying to remember just to pop this question to myself throughout the day but having it in print and right in front of my face might be a bit more reliable. It might free up some space in my melon too.

  31. Time to get a whiteboard for the office. I’ll probably need to write my quips of inspiration and productivity in all caps though. Sometimes yelling at myself motivates me to a point of where I am forced to take action. I hate being yelled at.

  32. It IS very easy to get distracted.

    Sometimes I find myself checking email roughly 2342 times per day, which does me nothing. Even “Payment Received” emails don’t help me make more money, so I need to learn how to stop checking it so often. However, having a task list has increased my productivity!

    Thanks for the post,
    -Gabriel Johansson

  33. Love the post…and the simplicity of it. The most important thing is to find a way which works for you.

    Had similar experiences with a TODO list. I was looking for the most effective way to keep track of things to do. I tried Outlook, ToDo for iPad, Evernote, Thinking Rock (including the whole Getting Things Done methodology), and found that what works best is simply: Pen and notebook. Write things down, and cross them. It is old school, but is simple, portable, and effective.

    Regarding the challenge, i don’t have the whiteboard, but i think i will write it on a piece of paper and stick it on my desk so it’s always starring at me :-)

  34. I have to make lists. Otherwise I can sit at my computers for hours and accomplish nothing. My list let me see what I’m accomplishing while reminding what I have left. Twitter is also my “farmville”. 6 months ago, I didn’t even get twitter. :)

  35. Ask yourself “what’s the most productive thing I can be doing for my blog right now?” And then do it.

  36. Yea but what happens when you don’t look up?

  37. You have rightly mentioned Darren. I too have the same habit – justifying every time that whatever I’m doing shall be of use to me for my online presence. And it’s now up to such an extent that browsing profiles of my friends on Facebook makes me think I’m building relationships for my blog and website. Thanks for that post. it has increased my conviction on seeing where do i spend my day’s time and do I really need to.

  38. Thanks for that Kick up the bum Darren.
    Excellent, simple and spot on.
    T

  39. Thanks for sharing Darren I love the last point on question why you are doing what you are doing because it forces us to observe ourselves and start to question our actions. Another way to observe yourself is to track your time everyday and start to notice when you are most productive and when you are least productive and when you go on twitter, facebook etc. After about a month of doing this I noticed a very sad pattern of non-productivity between 12 and 4 pm in my daily schedule and was able to increase my productivity by just working around this and allowing myself to play between 12 and 4 and wake up earlier so I can get at least 5 hours of work in before I start goofing off. I have moved my reading and social media play and meetings to my non-productive times because these are things I like to do and do not equate with “work”.

  40. Why did I read this post? Why am I leaving a comment here? Do I need to? Really?

  41. Great post. Fantastic questions to posse to self. I often tell my clients that you can’t make a good decision about keeping something if you have not answered why you have or do it. Thanks for getting that concept out there!

  42. Great article, and on a subject I have struggled with as well. I have managed to kick to the kerb all facebook games, I just don’t play them any more although there was a time when half my online time was spent on one game or another.
    Distractions from working at home is now the biggest issue, ie; kids, wife, household chores etc. getting the correct balance the hardest part.

  43. As of now, I’ve not really done anything. I’ve *thought* about setting up some sort of schedule or timer for being on Twitter (yep, that’s my distraction). I know I could be just as effective in 30 minutes a day.

    Another thing that takes up a lot of time is reading and commenting on blogs. Not that I don’t enjoy it, but I can easily get swept away in this.
    I couldn’t possibly follow and comment on every person who visits my blog so how do you do it?

  44. How to minimise distractions? Don’t use plugins like Yoono:)

    I love, love, love it but after a month of having it to the left of Firefox I’m finding it’s like being in a huge big conference room where everyone’s talking (or is that screaming) at once.

    Stop the noise! Interesting tweets from those you follow – FB posts with piccies flying in out of nowhere – all grabbing your attention pleading you to CLICK…and therefore waste TIME.

    I have come to this post today via your tweet – sucked in by the ‘how to’. I also replied to your tweet “good morning world…what’s been happening”…because with Yoono it feels like you’re talking directly to me – it would be rude if I did not reply. Ha!

    But as strangely named “Srjan – Bloom to Fit” says above, what happens when you don’t look up/follow what’s happening every second – the fear of missing out on something awesome is ever present if you ‘turn off’.

    So why am I writing this comment? Do I really need to do it? Really?

    Well – I can’t delete it now – that would definitely be a waste of time!

    Ha! OK – rave over. Back to work. Thanks for the interesting blog:)

  45. LOVE the Whiteboard reminder! I may have to incorporate one of my own into my office.

    My kryptonite is Twitter. ARGH! I can’t STOP!

  46. Goood post. I completely agree with you. Finding time for blogging is one of the hardest difficulties we(or I) face everyday. I always try but at the same time there will be other problems like “Oh! i need to harvest my crops in Farmville or they get withered” or “What would be next in Call of Duty Back Ops”. But now i realize it’s only me who can do something.

  47. One way to thinking about making good use of time is to think “if I had a life threatening illness, would I want to spend time doing this?” Your backboard note is a useful prompt, not only to Bloggers, but also to those of us who really “do” have limited time to do what we want to do.

  48. You know how some people (no one I know of course…) use to hook up their tv so they could only watch it if they were pedaling their bike??? (so they’d be gettting exercise while watching tv…

    well i think we/I need something like that. A timer on my computer that can sense (or I program to know) when I’ve been distracted too long, and it automatically shuts down or logs me off. Kind of works like the invisible fence for dogs. After a few times, you learn to behave!

    Amy Parmenter
    The ParmFarm

  49. Darren I think you should add this post either on Sunday or Monday …

    If you post on Sunday than this will be a nice food to think about and if you have posted on Monday than we will implement it immediately.

    But however this is only two questions and I am sure this will increase the productivity in many folds.

    Thanks mate for helping and hammering us again :)

  50. Or, you can do what I have done and make your ‘work’ a site to find really good distractions….

    http://Personalshoplifter.com

    ; )

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