Do you ever get on your computer to work and then an alert comes in from Facebook, or some other social media site, and you get distracted. Then before you even realize it, you have been sucked in by the social media site for an hour. While your work sits untouched. I know, this very scenario happens to me often, I am easily distracted. I often have lots to do each day. So I will try to do more than one task at a time, because that should work well right?
In theory you would think multitasking would help me to get more done. Make more free time for myself and more time to relax. But in my life I have found quite the opposite. Most of the time when I’m multitasking, I am not doing my best. Most of the time I end up with lots of projects half done or almost done. Which just makes more work for me in the long run.
Getting your list of things done for the day or week is good. But if you accomplish your tasks and neglect what is most important to you, in the end you haven’t won but lost. Focusing on what is most important first is best. You can look back at your day and see what you have accomplished and know you spent your time wisely.
Today Challenge is to Focus
Find something you really need to get done and write it down. But don’t stop there. You want to list all the distraction that are keeping you from accomplishing the task you have written down and add that to the list. Now share it with someone who can keep you accountable. To help keep your focus on the task at hand be sure to have your paper beside you. Glance at it as you work to help keep you focused on your task at hand. Finally turn off the phone, silence any computer alerts or other technology that can distract you. Then see how much more focused you are.
What I worked on,
My task for today was to work on two posts I have been putting off. It took me an hour or so to finish them up. I had to ignore my iPad chirping at me with each new alert, that was a lot harder than I realized (yes, I forgot to turn it off). Next time I will turn the alerts off. It’s funny how when you tell yourself you’re not going to look at the alerts until your task is done, how much more pull that little chirp has. But guess what? I finished them. It feels good to accomplish a task I had been putting off for a while.
Do you have a task that you need to focus on to just get it done?
[signoff]
Other Posts in this Series
Slow Down Challenge-Day 1 Stop and Smell the Roses
Slow Down Challenge-Day 2 Savor the Moment
I know just how you feel with distractions and multi-tasking. I take so much time reading emails, facebook, etc. that I lose much of my allotted time for my actual blog work. I also tend to get distracted with cleaning…I’ll stop real quick to wipe down a mirror, for example, and then move on to the next mirror without first finishing up my vacuuming in that room. I bet making a list would really help.