5 tools for focused work
Hot coffee mug cradled in your hands, you’ve pulled your chair up to your desk, (or your laptop and blanket onto your couch!) and one look at your to-do list tells you that it’s crunch time – time to knock out some serious work.
Maybe you’ve only got a few hours while the baby is napping or the kids are in school, or you’re sneaking in some time in the evening and somehow trying to be productive at the end of a long day.
Even if you do have the luxury of a whole day where you can work on your business, between emails, client work, marketing, admin, and the million other things that demand your time as a business owner, it never feels as though there’s enough time to get it all done.
So how do you stay focused and use that precious commodity of time as best as you can?
Today I wanted to share a few tools and strategies that I use and recommend when I need to banish the distractions and just focus on my work. If distraction or overwhelm feel like a constant battle for you when it comes to moving the needle in your business or using your time more efficiently, I hope there are some ideas here that will help!
Block off your time
If you’re anything like me, you probably have a to-do list somewhere – and when it comes time to work, you just sit down and start working through your list…. And what gets done, gets done, right?
The problem is that many of us are really not that great at estimating how long it takes us to get a certain task done. And so we work our way down our list, much more slowly than we anticipated, but the list seems like it’s hardly shrinking, and our progress seems so slow. And then we get a phone call or an email or a knock at our door, and all of a sudden the interruption of our time becomes an interruption of our work plan.
Timeblocking helps to solve these problems. The concept is simple: don’t use a to-do list. Use your calendar. Go through your day and actually write down how you will use your time that day. Create “appointments” for your work and to-dos – and then follow through on that plan.
When I started following his approach, I immediately saw the benefits:
I had a better sense of how much I could actually get done in a specific period of time, and how long tasks took me.
I began my day with a reasonable expectation of what I was going to do that day (5 things rather than 15!)… and so I finished the day feeling proud and productive rather than weighed down or frustrated at my lack of progress.
I didn’t get as distracted by things that just “came up” because I already had a plan for my day – or to put it differently, I was being proactive instead of reactive when it came to my time.
And best of all? Time blocking is FREE. You can do it with tools you already have at your disposal:
Paper and pen: Like in the photo above, grab a piece of paper and write the hours of the day along the left side of the page. Then block off sections of time for your work, until the page is full. Ta-da! It’s that simple.
Planner: If you use a planner - especially a daily planner that has room for hour-by-hour notes - don’t just use it to keep track of appointments. Use it to plan your day, hour by hour. I love the Simplified Planner for this.
Google Calendar / iCal / Outlook: Different tool, same concept. This is a free tool I bet you’re already using, and if it lives on your phone it goes with you everywhere. Timeblocking is a great way to just extend its functionality and make it work better for you.
Set smart background noise
According to a peer-reviewed study out of the University of Chicago, "A moderate level of ambient noise is conducive to creative cognition." Basically: having a bit of background noise helps to stimulate your mind and get those creative juices flowing.
But not just any noise will do – studies have also shown that specific types of sound do more for your productivity than others. Here are a few tools that I’ve tried and enjoyed:
Coffitivity - If you love working out of a coffee shop, this one’s for you. This website simulates the background noise of a cafe, with different tracks to choose from.
Brain.fm - This website uses neurology and psychology to develop specific soundtracks to help you focus, relax and meditate, or sleep – and they share their research to help you learn more about the science behind the sound.
Spotify - Spotify has a whole range of soundtracks for focused work and studying. I’m personally a fan of classical music and soundtracks, but they have options for every taste. Check out the “Focus” genre to get started.
Use the pomodoro technique
Developed in the 1980s by Francesco Cirillo, the pomodoro technique breaks down your work into limited, focused bursts of work followed by a short break – typically 25 minutes of work, then 5 minutes of rest. It got its name from the Italian word for “tomato”, after the tomato-shaped timer Cirillo used to track his work.
Here’s how it works:
Choose the task you’ll work on.
Set your timer, usually for 25 minutes.
Work on your task.
When the timer goes off, stop and take a short 5 minute break.
After four of these cycles (or pomodoros), take a longer break (15–30 minutes), then start the process over again.
Of course, you can adjust this to make it work for you – I actually prefer two longer 45 minute cycles instead of four shorter ones. But the concept remains the same: set a timer, power through, stop and break, then reset and keep going.
There are lots of pomodoro apps out there to help you track this, but the best one I’ve found is FocusBooster. I like how customizable it is, the fact that it works on my phone AND Mac, and its tracking features.
But whether you use an app like FocusBooster or just the timer function on your phone (or a good old-fashioned tomato-shaped timer like Cirillo!), this technique is definitely worth a try.
Block out digital distractions
We’ve all done it: we’re supposed to be hard at work and yet somehow we find ourselves mindlessly scrolling Facebook or Instagram instead. It’s like muscle memory that kicks in at the worst time!
Whether you want to set a regular schedule or just have a couple of hours of distraction-free time, the Freedom app is a great tool that blocks your access to websites and apps of your choosing during the times that you set. It’s a great way to help you unlearn some of those less-than-helpful habits and keep you from getting distracted by certain apps or websites when you don’t want to be.
And while it’s not free, I’ve found that the time I’ve saved (and my ability to turn that into productive, revenue-generating work) more than pays for this tool. This isn’t an affiliate link or sponsored post – just a tool that I’ve used myself and found to be really helpful!
Get clear on the work that matters most
One of the most common questions I get has to do with overwhelm. After all, it’s great to say that we want to be more focused on our work, but all the background noise and pomodoro techniques in the world won’t help us if we don’t know what to focus on. And when we feel uncertain about what to prioritize or where to start, that’s where the overwhelm kicks in.
If that’s you, it might be time to back up a little bit and take a look at your overall priorities and goals. If you set annual or quarterly goals, or if you use a tool like the Powersheets, go back and review them. You don’t need to totally start from scratch, but take a minute to get out of the weeds and remind yourself of what’s really important, then ask yourself what you can do right now to make those things happen.
Take action
I hope these tools, resources and strategies have provided you with some fresh inspiration for increasing your focus and productivity in your creative business this week.
But in the end, the most important thing you can do is start. Stop the scroll, put away the phone, pick the thing you’re going to do, and choose to take action, one step at a time. I’m cheering you on!
