Four Things That Help Me Stay Focused

Summary

The article outlines four strategies for enhancing focus and productivity while working, particularly from home.

Abstract

The author, a university Finance instructor who often works remotely, shares personal insights on minimizing distractions and maximizing productivity. The strategies include setting clear time expectations for work sessions, finding an isolated workspace, utilizing do-not-disturb functions to minimize interruptions, and using a timer to maintain a productive work-break rhythm. The author emphasizes that these techniques are most effective when used in combination.

Opinions

The author believes that setting a clear time expectation helps prevent the temptation to take breaks prematurely.
Isolating oneself in a quiet space, such as a closed room or library, is crucial for maintaining focus, especially when working from home or in a busy office environment.
Turning on do-not-disturb functions and avoiding email during focused work sessions is considered critical to avoid distractions and maintain momentum.
Using a timer to work in focused bursts of 45-60 minutes followed by short breaks is recommended to sustain concentration and prevent burnout.
The author suggests that combining these four strategies consistently leads to improved focus and increased productivity.

We all know avoiding distractions can be a challenge

I teach Finance at a University and often work from home when I am not teaching. This is when I am most susceptible to distractions like food breaks, doing laundry, watching television, and picking up my phone to “quickly check on something.”

To stay focused I have tried a multitude of techniques. I have found four that work really well for me. Each has merit, but I am at my best when I use them all simultaneously.

Below, I outline four simple things that have proven to reduce distraction and have led to more production in my work and I hope they will help you as well.

1. Before You Start: Set Time Expectations

Before you get started, be sure to set up an expectation of the total time you want to work on the activity and what items you want to work on during that time. This way, you will not feel tempted to break until you reach this predetermined time commitment.

For example, state that you want to work on research for a total of 3.0 hours. This will set clear expectations for yourself.

2. Find an Isolated Place

This seems obvious, but it’s often ignored. If working from home, isolating yourself from music, television or other people is key to staying focused. You should find a room where you can keep the door closed, head to a library, or otherwise find a space without foot traffic.

If you work in an office setting, this will be more challenging. Close your door if you have an office. Find a conference room if possible. If you work out in the open, then try your best to let others know that you are working on something that needs focus.

3. Use Do Not Disturb

Find the do not disturb function on your phone and turn off your email on your laptop. This is a critical step in the process. Removing the temptation to respond to anything during your focus time will help you tremendously.

Checking your phone in the middle of your progress will likely lead to going off on tangents which destroy your momentum and waste valuable time.

The key to success here is to keep the momentum going for 45–60 minutes.

4. Use a Timer

This is last, but certainly not least. Setting a timer encourages you to stick with your activity until the first “break.” For me, if I am doing research or grading papers, I will set the timer for 45 minutes. This allows me to work straight for 45 minutes and allows me to clean up loose ends for another 10 or 15 minutes to get me close to an hour of focus time. An hour is a very manageable amount of time to concentrate without getting antsy.

Once that hour is up, it’s time to take a short break which will be no longer than 15 minutes. This allows you to get up, “recharge the batteries,” and refocus for another 45 minutes.

I suggest you use a free, simple timer app on your laptop so you don’t need to use your phone!

Using these four simple, yet very effective, items in concert with each other has greatly improved my focus and production. I suggest you give this combination a try the next time you need some serious focus. The process is very simple, easy to implement, and has proven to be extremely effective.