Dealing With and Deflecting Distractions – First, Know What Distracts You and Decreases Productivity

Posted on May 2nd, 2009, by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D.

What distracts you? Is it sounds, physical movement, clutter, your own brain, or maybe something else? Before you can begin to eliminate distractions, you have to identify what they are. This article categorizes distractions and offers several examples for each. See if any of these could be distracting you.

Distracting sounds include:

email sounds
telephones ringing
other people’s voices
sounds made by others (barking dogs, mowers, equipment, hammering, etc.)
sounds made by particular electronic devices (TVs, radios, CDs, fans,

Maybe there is some other sound that distracts you and if so, identify that now and add it to the list above.

Another sense that leads to distraction is the sense of sight. Sights that may distract you include:

clutter or other visual mayhem on your desk, workspace, office, etc.
movement by others (walking by your office, by the window, and so forth).
the email ‘shadow’ that shows up letting you know you have email coming in…as if you didn’t already know that it’s constantly arriving.

Right now, just look around your workspace or home and SEE what it is that pulls your attention away from your work. Add that to the list above.

Our own brains and thoughts are often highly distracting. Those distracting thoughts might include…

things you need to do (or think you need to do)
things you are concerned that you will forget
things that you are worried about – either in the personal or professional arena
thoughts of ‘should I be…?’ (doing this, doing that…)
brilliant ideas – particularly if they seem more interesting than what you are currently working on

What is swirling around in your head right now? If there are some particular types of mental distractions that you experience, add them to the list above.

A fourth category of distraction may very well be your own habits. These include, for example:

non-productive routines, such as: dinking around when you first get to the office, i.e., fixing coffee, checking your email, chatting with a few colleagues, shuffling around with items at your desk. Or, what about the non-productive routine that occurs when you get home, i.e., aimless meandering around – not relaxing, not doing anything, just frittering away your time (and your life).
not keeping a prioritized list of what you need to be and want to be doing.
not scheduling your time properly or not scheduling it at all.
not having what you need when you need it
And let’s not forget the habit (and it is a habit) involving the inability to say ‘no’ to others (or to yourself).

Are there any habits that you think contribute to being and staying distracted? Add it to the list so you can go back later to consider some remedies.

You want to make a complete list of all the occurrences, senses, and habits that distract you. Then, you can start to deal with and diminish those distractions.

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