A Remote Entrepreneur’s Handbook to Minimizing Distractions
It can be challenging to tune out the noise and focus on building your bottom line when working remotely. From children and pets to household needs, remote entrepreneurs need to do what they can to control the distractions and maintain their productivity. Here are a few tips and guidelines to help you discard the distractions in your work-from-home workday.
Realize that certain tasks can act as distractions
Not all to-do listen items are created equally. Low-value administrative tasks like managing mail can distract you from what matters when running your business. Rather than wasting time dealing with junk mail, driving to the post office, and sorting your correspondence, you can use a digital mailbox resource like iPostal1. Digital mailbox technology alerts you anytime you receive mail and gives you the option to view scans, meaning you can stay focused on the task at hand.
Use your home office only for work-related tasks
When you work from home, it’s essential to separate your workspace from your leisure space. The best way to accomplish this separation is to use your home office for work tasks. Your family will quickly learn that when you are in the office, you are working.
Having a dedicated workspace conditions your brain to pay attention while you’re managing your entrepreneurial operations.
Put away your distracting tech devices
It’s easy to get distracted by emails, text messages, and online shopping. To stay focused on your business tasks, keep your phone away from your home office when you’re working. Schedule your tech playtime during your leisure time so you can accomplish your work tasks without distracting yourself.
Schedule downtime throughout the day
If you were working in a brick-and-mortar office, you would have scheduled breaks. Give yourself a few breaks throughout the workday so you can stay refreshed and focused. Depending on your needs, you could give yourself a ten-minute break once per hour.
It’s important not to sit at your desk for several hours at a time. Many remote workers get up once per hour to walk around for five or ten minutes. Scheduled movement helps remote workers stay healthy and focused during their dedicated, uninterrupted work time.
Avoid multitasking by scheduling specific tasks
Multitasking is a myth that pushes employees to do several things at once. The human brain can only focus on one task at a time, so it is pointless to try and juggle three or four jobs. Rather than trying to accomplish several things at once and doing them all poorly, create a schedule where you focus on one task until it’s completed. Then, move on to the next one.
Decide if you are distracted or avoiding work
To best avoid distractions, you have to know what distracts you. Often, our distractions are the reasons we use to avoid doing tasks we don’t like. So, decide if you are distracted or trying to get out of doing work. You might be surprised by what you learn about yourself.
Wrap up
As a remote entrepreneur, you’ve already learned how to get work done away from a traditional office setting. Minimizing distractions often involves creative solutions, dedicated workspaces, and highly organized schedules. Use your entrepreneurial spirit to solve your distraction problems, and you’ll continue finding success.
