140: Don't Let Distractions Bring You Down - a podcast by Jason W. Womack MEd, MA

Every time you are interrupted or distracted, the energy you were building from moving your project forward is halted, and you need to start over. Too many times, you need to gather new strength to pick up where you left off, and you may waste valuable minutes trying to figure out exactly where that was.

Are Distractions Getting In Your Way?

Have you noticed that many times when you are focusing on your work and are approaching that momentum where things start to flow easily, you get interrupted?

“The average American worker has fifty interruptions a day, of which seventy percent have nothing to do with work."
W. Edwards Deming American statistician, professor, author, lecturer, consultant and all-round business brain, born in 1900.

Now, he was writing about interruptions and distractions throughout the 1960s through the 1980s. Do you know what that number is today? Nearly triple that of what Mr. Deming found in his consulting work…

In this podcast, I will teach you 2 ways you can not just avoid distractions, but possibly even use them to your advantage.

1. Science continues to prove what our intuition knows: Interruptions do impact productivity. However, there may be a positive or negative impact to your productivity. According to University of California, Irvine researcher Dr. Gloria Mark, there may be a difference between the different kinds of distractions or interruptions. Interruptions that add to the task at hand make us more productive. Alternatively, interruptions on topics different from what we’re working on force us to change our work rhythms, strategies and even mental states.

2. Interrupt other people first. Before starting a work session, think of the people that might interrupt you -- it may be a team member, a client or even a manager -- and interrupt them first. You can use the time before your focus period to get in contact with them and anticipate anything they may need from you. You should also mention that you will be unavailable during the next 45 minutes because you will focus on a specific piece of work that needs to get done.

Set your timer for 45 minutes, and leave your desk; go to a place where you can be alone. It can be a different office or conference room or even the nearby coffee shop. By getting away from your desk, you will not be available for phone calls or to check your emails.

BONUS: Ok, I know I said I’d give you two tips, but I’ve got one more that I have to share with you. Here it is:

3. Make a list today, for tomorrow. I want you to write down TWO (yes, only two) things you’re going to work on before noon tomorrow (even if tomorrow is a weekend day, or a holiday!). Put these on a note card and tape it to your bathroom mirror. Write them on your hand. Call a friend, and ask them to text you mid-morning and at noon tomorrow. However you can create the accountability to DO what you said you’re going to do…Do it.

I promise, if you pick two things you’re going to do by 12pm tomorrow, and you look at them through the rest of today, and tomorrow morning, you’re going to HAVE to make at least some progress on them. And, as I have thought for years, a little progress every day is about as equal to waiting until the last minute and doing it anyway!

Thank you for listening to this week’s podcast. Hey, I have an offer for one listener… Jump over to http://GetMomentum.co/podcast and sign up for the Bonus Course I posted for you there. THEN, after you register, send me an email letting me know how YOU found out about the podcast. I’m going to choose one listener and send you a surprise gift in the mail… You ready for this?

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