What Are Your Biggest Distractions?
by Kori Rodley Irons | More from this Blogger
We do a lot of chatting here in the Home Business Blog about the realities of running a business from home--lots of advice and suggestions and factual, useful information. But, this early morning as I struggle to get myself going (I like to get in a couple hours of work before anyone else gets up around here), my two frisky cats are chasing each other through the downstairs--frequently racing underneath my desk chair. Needless to say, it interrupts my focus just a bit. It gets me to wondering at all you other home business folk and I'm curious--what are YOUR biggest distractions to getting work done?
I know that many of you have wee little ones who are busy and demanding throughout the day--so that has to count as a major "reality" in running your business (I'm not sure I'd consider kids a distraction, so I was trying to choose a better word.)! But, for me, there are so many little things that call me away and make it tough for me to stay on track...
The kitchen can be a big distraction, I'll wander in for a cup of coffee or a snack and find myself baking a cake or chopping vegetables for a soup or stew. Just walking through the house can be quite the distraction as I notice floors that need to be vacuumed, cobwebs in the corners, thirsty plants begging for a sip of water. If I don't set specific time schedules for myself to stay at my desk, or take myself out to the bookstore or coffee shop to get work done, I can totally get sucked into domestic duties.
E-mail and phone calls can eat up a chunk of my day--and not the business sort of e-mail and phone calls either. The call to be social is pretty darn strong for me. I think I'll just answer one little note and soon I'm sending e-cards and exchanging digital photos with far-away friends. So, I have to try to keep myself on a pretty tight regime when it comes to how much time I allot to personal e-mails and phone calls too.
That's enough about my distractions--how about you? What are the biggies that pull you away from work and make it challenging to stay focused on your business?