Distractions! They’re everywhere we look! Every ding we get on our phone, every pop up on our computer, every unnecessary and distracting social interaction we have when we should be focused all deplete productivity completely. Everyone faces distractions on a daily basis and some people deal with it better than others do. When you become conscious of distractions and how much they are taking you away from achieving your goals, making changes in your life to avoid them at all costs becomes imperative! The following contains some of the biggest daily distractions and how to deal with them to maximize productivity.
1. Social media
Social media is by far the number one distraction people get lost in on a daily basis. Scrolling through your feed on Instagram or TikTok is as addicting as it gets and oftentimes people spend more time on these apps than they realize. Time seems to go so much slower and before you know it an hour and a half went by! Baffled and wondering where the day went, the conscious mind doesn’t even realize half the day was spent on social media! The best way to handle this problem is to delete social media, however we know that this isn’t going to happen for 99.9% of people. A common excuse for scrolling through social media is, “Well, I’m using social media for business.”. Sure, but at the same time, scrolling on your news feed and promoting your work or business are two separate things people enveloped in social media overuse denial tend to misconstrue. A tangible way to avoid social media during the day is to schedule time for it to be used after work. Set a timer for yourself for as short a time as you can to make sure you aren’t overindulging into the time-wasting space. Turn off social media notifications on your phone that give you the urge to check apps for updates on the latest trends, Get rid of anything that makes noise or pops up on your phone regarding social media during your hours of work. This is the best way to mitigate social media use and relegate it to strictly non-work time. Another thing you can do is make time to schedule your social media posts if you’re using it for business purposes. This enables you to post things and set it to release at a later time so you aren’t tempted to be distracted by social media during the day. I personally use this benefit in my own life and business and it works like a charm!
2. Unnecessary notifications
Aside from social media, people get all kinds of notifications throughout the day that are simply there for distraction. For example, ESPN and fantasy sports apps send notifications multiple times a day and have big enticing headlines. This often entices the receiver of these notifications to stop what they are doing to check their phone. These notifications are associated with a rabbit hole of content once opened up and are ripe for massive distraction. Avoiding this is simple. Turn off notifications for every single app that is not pertinent for work so that you are not tempted by enticing headlines. This is such a simple fix, yet so few people actually do it. If you find these notifications to be distracting, I suggest you go to settings on your phone every day before work and shut off these annoying notifications or set your phone to do not disturb.
3. Texting and calling for leisure
How many times do we get messages throughout the day from friends, significant others, and family that can wait for later after work. Taking these calls and answering these texts takes the mind out of whatever it was currently focusing on, and turning that attention elsewhere onto a distraction. These conversations can wait 99% of the time, and you can allocate some time in the evening and night to respond to these messages and calls. However, taking them during a time when you are trying to focus on getting work done is a huge distraction for the mind and your focus. If you are not using your phone for work currently and aren’t expecting any calls, I suggest using the do not disturb feature to silence all incoming notifications including text messages and calls. If you send a text to someone who has their silent mode on, they will receive no notification unless you select the button, “notify anyway”. This is a great feature that allows people on both ends of the interaction to decipher the important from the things that can wait until later.
4. Running into the social butterflies
Social butterflies are everywhere in any line of work. Even if you’re in your office with the door closed, these types of people will come in and sit down to have an unnecessary conversation anyway. Also, engaging in long and drawn out conversation in common areas is all too common as well and can account for hours of distraction a month. Making it clear to these people that you will not be part of their social circle during work hours is vital to accomplishing more on that day. If you give these people even the slightest inclination that you’re open for a conversation, they will very well take advantage of that. Be polite but stern in letting people know you’re serious during your working hours and you will develop a reputation that you are not to be disturbed during the day unless it is necessary and work related.
5. Surfing the web
When you turn on your computer, you are bombarded with distraction after distraction. Aside from all of the notifications we spoke about before, there is plenty more out there looking to distract you. When you log into a browser such as Google, Yahoo, or Bing, they have the latest stories up and ready for you to take a look at. Don’t give in as these are oftentimes rabbit holes that consume hours of time. Stay focused on your intentions and what you need to accomplish for the day. Only keep work related tabs open to avoid having your attention steered to any other distraction. This will help you develop laser focus on what needs to get done and not so much the other fluff your computer algorithm would like you to consume.
6. Directionless meetings
Ever since I was a little kid I wondered why corporate adults had so many meetings throughout the day. It wasn’t until later that I realized a lot of the meetings are formalities more than anything else with no clear objective. If you are going to have a meeting, make sure the objective of that meeting is set before it starts, and that there is a timeframe in which that meeting will begin and end in a relatively brisk fashion. Meetings that are all over the place or drawn out can quickly turn into distractions. Make sure that your meetings always feel necessary before you commit to having or attending them.
In this article, we covered six of the biggest distractions you may face during the work day and how to eliminate them from your life. If you find yourself giving in to one of these distractions and you can’t seem to stop it from affecting your life, try to punish yourself every time you give in to the distraction. For example, if you open an ESPN article during a time when you’re supposed to be focused, do 20 push-ups. The more times you do this and the sorer you get, your body will begin to understand and correlate the soreness to the distraction. This negative correlation will ensure you eliminate it and can get back to doing what needs to be done. Even in a world full of distractions, there has never been more opportunity to thrive and succeed. Put your best foot forward every day and avoid distractions at all costs.