Tasks, especially the ones that are profiting, most times require maximum possible attention but we do not always give them our full attention as people and things, as well as the hustle and bustle of our surroundings bring distractions that make us not focus on our jobs as supposed. Distractions are very difficult to avoid because they are tied to our everyday life activities and emanate from our immediate environment. We may not be able to move away from distracting activities all the time.
Distractions have negative impact on our productivity especially in the area of work. You may not be able to take on or focus on a side job that would help you make extra money if you are distracted. For you to be effective in tasks that bring you money, you have to be less distracted. In other words, you have to stay focused on the task that brings you more money.
How you can eliminate distractions that keep you from focusing on tasks that bring you more money
Below are tips to help you eliminate distractions so as to focus on tasks that bring you more money:
Check for the causes within and without
Distractions are caused by lack of interest in a particular activity or lack of ability to pay attention to an activity of importance. They can also be caused by the appeal of the distracting action. For you to be able to successfully overcome distractions you must be able to tell yourself what really is distracting you. Is it internal or from your immediate environment? Distractions may be caused internally by burnout, hunger, illness, fatigue, and even worrying. You may also be distracted externally by what you hear or see. Identifying the main cause of distraction is the very first step to take if you will eliminate distractions. After eliminating these distractions, you can focus on the task at hand and then go on to make more money.
Plan
A very good way through which you can eliminate distractions is through proper planning. You can either plan your tasks for the day, a day before or at the start of your day. This would make it easier for you to avoid getting distracted. It would also save the time you’d normally have used on unimportant things. Also, when planning the day, make sure the difficult tasks are given priority.
When scheduling your activities for the day, identify and take note of the activities that are to be eliminated. This is a very tricky thing to do because distracting tasks may come in impromptu – you just have to be deliberate.
Take a break
When working, if you feel worn out, take a quick break. Breaks at intervals, helps you regain physical strength and mental focus.
Set time limits
Set daily time limits to handle complex tasks and when these time limits get exhausted, stop working.
Start as early as possible
Begin your day as early as possible; start with organizing your day. You would be prepared for activities you would be giving your time to when you start by organizing your day.
Create a distraction-free atmosphere
A distraction-free atmosphere is an atmosphere that makes you less tempted to take on an activity different from your main task at hand. For many, a distraction-free atmosphere is one without connection to the internet. Put your computer and mobile phone aside when working except if you’re working on the net.
Also, you may want to play some music when working to block out noisy distractions i.e. if you can work with music – not everyone can.
A dirty and disorganized environment can also be distracting, so before you take on your tasks for the day you should clean and organize your environment so as to eliminate distractions.
Manage your thoughts
Many of the times we think about things different from what we are supposed to be doing. Our minds often wander away from our immediate task. Know when your mind is no longer focused on the task at hand and bringing your attention back to it. For you to be able to do this, you must pay close attention to your thoughts, so as to recognize when your mind drifts off.
Whenever you notice distracting thoughts, be deliberate about not paying attention to them. Once you give in to distracting thoughts, it would be very hard to regain focus and bring your attention back to the task at hand. Managing your thoughts is not an easy process, but when you practice it constantly, you would soon get a hang of it.
Multi-tasking distracts; avoid it
Pay attention to one task at a time; do not multi-task. Multi-tasking is a source of distraction. Apart from distracting you, multi-tasking may overtime lead to loss of the ability to differentiate between interruptions that are important from those which are unimportant. Multi-tasking may be a form of laziness. Read how to overcome laziness here.
Remember the goal
The title of this article reads: “how can I eliminate distractions that keep me from focusing on the task that bring in more money”. That means you are reading this article because you want to eliminate distractions so you can focus on tasks and ultimately make more money- never forget that. Remembering the goal will motivate you and keep you focused
FOCUSING ON A TASK
Our brains always seek out what to do next- this can be very distracting. In order for us to be able to focus on what is important (in this case, a task that brings us more money) we need to be able to properly handle distractions and this article has been able to point out nine ways this can be achieved. As a reminder, nine ways of avoiding distraction as explained in this article include:
- By checking out for the possible causes of the distraction
- Through proper planning
- By taking breaks when necessary
- By setting time limits
- Starting your day as early as possible
- By creating a distraction-free atmosphere
- Through proper thought management
- By avoiding multi-tasking; and
- By remembering the goal – making more money.