Productivity Tips: More Tips for Avoiding Interruptions

Some tasks, like creative work, writing, and research, require blocks of uninterrupted time when you can concentrate exclusively on one topic. Interruptions can especially be a problem if you have multiple people working from home at the same time.

Previously, we outlined five tips for preventing interruptions while you work. Here are six more interruption-busting ideas to help you work more effectively:

Basic Principles of All Time Management

Are you having trouble getting started on time management? Feeling overwhelmed? You know you need to get organized to take control of your time. But when you feel swamped, you don't have time to research the best way to manage your time.

Here's a concise summary of the basics of all time management programs to help you clarify how to stop squandering your time and to leverage it to focus on what matters for your life path.

Information Overload Awareness Day

Today, October 19, is Information Overload Awareness Day 2021. These days, we have more information flowing into our lives than at any former time in history. The Internet has accelerated the flow of information exponentially.

“Information overload has become a well-known problem: pieces of knowledge pile up too fast for people to sort and make sense of them.” ~ K. Eric Drexler

Productivity Tip: Checklists for Recurring Tasks

For tasks that you do regularly, write up outlines of the steps required. This is especially important for tasks that you don't do regularly enough to remember the exact steps every time you do it. It's so easy to miss a step when you do something repeatedly.

Productivity Tip: Bridging Between Sessions

Often the hardest part of making progress on a project is... getting started. Or re-started after a break. When you sit down to start a writing session, you're facing a blank page. When you set up your easel to paint, you face a blank canvas. When you start a planning effort, it's a blank calendar. When you're cleaning the garage, it's the opposite: complete overwhelm.

Whatever type of project you're working on, getting yourself going on each session can be a challenge.

Productivity Tips: Setting Goals

Happy New Year!

It's that time of the year again. We sit down and review the past year and map out a path for the next year. How are we doing on long-term goals? Is it time to discard some old ones? What short term goals should we attack for next year? Entire books have been written on goal-setting. But a few basic tips can help you set better goals for your resolutions for the New Year:

Productivity Tips: 5 Tips for Nurturing Creativity

When you're stuck on a current project... When you're looking for new ideas for your next project... When you need a creative solution to a problem... Creativity moves you toward your productivity goals.

Whether you're writing a story, creating a work of art, designing a website, or planning a wedding, here are 5 tips to stimulate your creativity:

Productivity Tips: Effective Telephone Tips

If you find yourself spending too much time on the phone, these tips can help streamline your phone time.

Productivity Tips for Working from Home

Whether you're starting a home-based business, are temporarily working from home, or are teleworking, you need a functional home office that helps rather than hinders your work.

You need an office workspace that helps you work efficiently. You need effective time management. And you need to stay organized. Here are some ideas for dealing with the challenges of working at home.

Seven Tips for Coping During "Shelter in Place"

Many of us are currently self-isolating, under orders to shelter in place, or under quarantine. Even if you're still working from home, you probably have time on your hands when you would have been commuting, socializing, or running errands. Those not used to having a lot of unstructured time, trapped with only immediate family members, or even completely alone, can rapidly succumb to cabin fever.

You might feel like you've lost control of your life. Constant stress and loss of focus can lead to ennui.

It's tempting to just sit in front of the TV. But I've found that getting something constructive accomplished helps me feel more in control of an uncontrollable situation.