Increase Your Productivity By Eliminating Distractions

If you have too many distractions while you work, the distractions will slow you down.  That's because when you're interrupted, it will take some time to get back into the task.  You'll have to figure out where you left off.

The solution is to eliminate as many distractions as possible when you're working.  For instance, if you have personal phone calls while you're working, tell them to call you when you're not working.  Let your voice mail answer your personal calls while you're working.

If you use an instant messenger, set your status to busy or turn it off.  If you need to use it for work-related purposes, have a separate instant messenger account that's used for work.  This is where your work-related contacts go.  That way, the people who message you will send you a message only for work-related purposes.  You won't be interrupted by personal messages.

Another tip is to close your email client.  Or if you prefer to have it open, try changing the settings so the alert won't show whenever you receive an email.  The email alerts can distract you because your eyes will dart to it, interrupting your train of thought.

While working, avoid surfing the web.  Be sure to work all the time you work.  If you need to take breaks, try setting a time limit, such as 30 minutes, and work all the time during the time limit.  Once the time limit is up, you're free to take a break.

If you have a cell phone that receives personal calls, turn it off while you're working.  You can get back to the calls later with your voice mail.