Assuming that you currently have a proper mindset and that you’re determined to become a successful entrepreneur, then you’ll quickly find that enemy #1 to you getting the job done is distraction. A distraction is anything that successfully pulls you away from the tasks at hand. Becoming a successful entrepreneur is a matter of completing the right tasks in a timely fashion. Anything in the way of that is enemy #1; a distraction.
Step 1: Identify Them – Distractions come in two ways. They come from within and from your environment. Identifying them is the first step to getting rid of them.
Distractions coming from within are often the most challenging to deal with, but knowing what they are is huge to ending their power over you. Do some brainstorming and list on paper what are the things that pull you away from work that begin in your thoughts. An example might be that when you think of food you immediately decide that you need to eat something to give you more energy. If that’s the case then list it.
Make another list of things you can think of that happen and then often pull you away from work. One example might be when the phone rings. Do you always answer it? If so, then add this to the list. If you’re having trouble making this list then take a day and every time you find yourself taken off task add what took you off task to the list. Then move on to Step 2.
Step 2: Create a schedule – It’s crucial that you have a schedule if you truly want to remove distractions from your life. Distractions can be added to your schedule, but they need to have their place in your day and not take away time you’ve reserved for the required tasks of building your business. For example, you may wonder what’s going on with your favorite team. Fine, if you follow sports, you don’t need to rid it from your life, but schedule it and keep it constrained to that time period as a reward if you complete your schedule up until that point.
If you try to be productive and avoid distractions without a schedule you’re only setting yourself up to fail and fail quickly. So, create a good schedule today. Read our post on creating a schedule.
Step 3: Good Communication – You’ve identified your internal and external distractions and created a schedule, now it’s time to go up against your distractions head-on. In this step you’re going to do some pre-emptive work to mitigate the power these distractions have over you and your day.
Internal distractions are beaten back by your will and a little common sense ahead of time. For example, if you really are having trouble not answering the phone then you need to turn it off and place it in a room away from where you work. This will make it very hard for you to even consider jumping on your phone. Go to each item on your list and set up barriers like that between you and the things that pull you away from your work.
Often, the external distractions will be the people in your life who you love. You need to communicate to them what you are trying to do and why. They will understand and want to support you. If they don’t, then you need to get to the bottom of why not. It’s very important that everyone in your life and especially those who you live with are on the same page with you. If you’re having a hard time with these conversations then you may not even be on that page.
In conclusion, distractions don’t have power over you unless you let them or think you don’t have the ability to schedule your day. Everything is achievable if you have the will to do it.
TCA, LLC 