How to stay focused at work

Unfortunately, procrastination happens to all of us.

No matter how motivated you are, distracting yourself from what needs to be done, with things that definitely don’t need to be done, can seem like the most tempting option.

Here are a few of our top tips on how to stop procrastinating at work:

• Eliminate distractions – This may seem obvious, but does that mean you always do it? Even if your distractions are work-related, they could still be affecting the quality of the task you’re currently working on. Because let’s face it, nobody can tackle that many things at once and actually do them right. So whether it’s your email inbox or social media, eliminate those distractions.

• Focus on the ‘why’ – Sometimes tasks can be impossible to tackle just because you have no idea why you’re doing them. So before you procrastinate, ask yourself why a particular task or project is important – and why it needs with a deadline. Focusing your attention on the positive outcomes of a project or task, is a great way to give your work some actual meaning. And if you can’t find one good enough then maybe it’s not that important.

• Avoid over-planning – Excessive planning can be just as bad as social media, your phone, snacks, and excessive office breaks. Create a simple and easy plan with small, realistic steps – and actually get started. If you give yourself too much at once, you’re basically asking to be stressed out. You might not get everything done, but you’ll definitely get the right things done.

• Stop self-doubt – If a particular task or project seems challenging, it can be easier to just avoid it all together. In other words, you’re scared of doing it wrong, so you might as well just not do it, instead of trying to be a perfectionist and investing unnecessary time trying to figure it out. But instead of running away, try to figure out what it is that’s making it so difficult – then do your best to overcome these roadblocks. It could just be that more research or a second opinion is exactly what you need to make things clearer.

So again just to emphasis, try taking away your social media, phone, or even just cutting of the internet, to make sure you don’t lose focus. Take small steps to achieve big goals!