Note to self: don’t get distracted.
I’m sure you’ve been there: you have a lot of things to do, but somehow you find yourself bouncing around between tasks not really accomplishing anything. I have to, believe me.
The simplest, fastest tasks can take all day when we allow ourselves to wander. We have to practice self discipline and focus. But how do we do this? Especially when everything begs your attention and you are running out of time?
While listening to a podcast recently, I heard an interesting “law”. It went something along the lines that “work will often expand or retract to the amount of time you give it”.
Think about it, if you have all day and want to get something done and work at it this is true. You wind up spending the day working towards working on your work, but not actually doing the work.
But on the other hand, if you have a very limited time and have to get something done, you quite often can.
Now this is general, not absolute. But if you stop and think about it, I think you’ll find it to be true.
Late last year, the company I work for was informed that an audit was scheduled five days out. Five days! And two of those days included the weekend! So with three whole business days to get a whole list (100+) of documents together, I went to work on it.
I can’t remember the last time I sent so many emails and made so many phone calls in a day. But at the conclusion of that third day, we had almost 100% of the information we needed. That was incredible.
You see typically I anticipate these audits and begin preparing for them a month in advance. I’m never quite sure when they will happen, but I know a general timeline, so I can anticipate them. When I prepare for them this far in advance, I work on them a bit here and a bit there.
And just like that law of business states above, my work seems to expand and retract to the amount of time that is available. Isn’t that interesting?
I find that knowing this law or idea inspires me to work smarter. And I greatly appreciate that! Whether I am doing housework or secretarial work, I certainly want to work well! And one very important key to this is not to let myself get distracted!
Now we can’t cut all distractions out of life completely, but one thing that we can do that I find very helpful is postpone them. I am under no illusion that we can avoid them altogether!
Postponing distractions can be incredibly helpful in applying yourself to what needs to get done!
Typically when one is trying to focus on a task multiple interruptions and distractions present themselves. These might come in the form of crying babies, phone calls, emails, or someone popping by. Don’t fret and stress out over these distractions, simply postpone them for just a moment!
Take a moment to write yourself a note of where you are, finish a section of your work, or plan a time to come back to what you are doing. Be intentional and not just reactive! Obviously, if it is an emergency, drop your work. But if it is simply a distraction, push it off for just a minute in order to prepare yourself for a smoother transition when you get back to your work.
I hope these ideas help you get your work done more efficiently! Sometimes a bit of self government is all it takes to complete a task! Remember many of the distractions that come along are simply a lack of focus on the task at hand.
And I promise I’m preaching to myself on this as I have many distractions come up in a day! Work while you can work, so that you can enjoy a friendly visit when a friend comes by!
Until Next Time!
Hope.
PS. If you have hints and tips on how to avoid distractions, I’d love it if you would share! Send me an email or post them below!