Last month I announced to the world that I had retired from my day job. I shared the delightful freedoms and pitfalls I’d discovered which had to do with Time Management. I’d like to share the issue of FOCUS with you this month.
FOCUS is a skill that requires constant care, feeding, and tweaking as you make your way through your journey of life. No matter if you’re answering to an 8 to 5 job, wrangling kids, tending to an aging faction of your life who need you to help them, -- or even on vacation--, you need to have a game plan for your day and stick to it or you’ll find any number of distractions will hijack your good intentions.
Trust me, you are looking at the queen of distraction!
Well-meaning friends and relatives are convinced I have so much time on my hands now that I'm not working, why not go shopping or try the new place in town for lunch? I get invited to help plan wedding/baby showers. I’m at the top of volunteer lists.
Just one simple lunch date with friends tends to evolve into unplanned grocery shopping, car washes, my car parking itself in the Hobby Lobby lot, etc. You get the picture. By the time I get home, it’s not 1:30 as planned, but 3:30 and now I have to think about planning dinner.
Multiply that “fun” by 5 days a week and all of a sudden I sit down Friday night and look at my to-do list and realize only 2 items out of 14 have been crossed off.
And words added to my Scrivener file are woefully missing.
Self-help blogs, books and advice for productivity are out there by the thousands. I listened to and researched many of them, but soon found only a handful fit my lifestyle and routine. Even fewer came with implementation without breaking my budget.
Last month I mentioned I’m going through our house and sorting, donating, or throwing away clutter. That’s just a side job of what I want to accomplish in this phase of my life. Though lunch with friends and a well stocked kitchen are nice, my GOAL is to return to a routine that carves word count back into my day in order to write and finish books.
#1 - I had to clean up my workspace. I’m fortunate to have a room in our house dedicated as my “office.” Along with the worksurface, books, research materials, etc, my office has also transformed into the catch all of random stuff looking for a home. My goal is for all of it to leave my work area. My focus is on entering an environment that confirms that I’m coming to work each day to write.
#2 - I had to make a schedule. Ha! Making the schedule is easy, it’s staying on task that’s difficult. Silly me, I thought coming off of an 8 hour workday, I’d be able to replace day job work duties with writing time and all the admin things that come with it. After a couple of frustrating weeks of failure, I finally blocked out a couple hours each day and play it all by ear. My focus is treating writing as a priority. Time and persistence pays off. Frustration is lessening and new habits are forming. This is not an overnight solution, but more a long-term lifestyle.
#3 - I had to develop a mobility routine - translated, it means I have to get up and move. To me, any type of planned movement is exercise: walking the dogs and working around the house are my two standards. But, I found that if I didn’t get up and physically move away from whatever I was doing each hour, my mind wandered and my focus bounced to things that derailed me for much longer than simply getting up, walking around the house or outside for 5 minutes, refilling my water and then back to the task at hand. Get up! Clear your head! Change your scenery for a few minutes. Hyperfocus is not always your friend. Focus on a healthy routine leading to a healthy life.
Those are the big three suggestions that help keep my mind of track and things are actually getting done. Cutesy slogans and inspirational goal setting memes do nothing for this brain. Persistence to routine and prayer for focus keep me looking at my planner for direction. “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6 -- those are the words that assure me I'm on the track and I have a job to do.
What works for you? I love success in action. Bring them on and let’s chat!
I had a few months last year where I was not employed. I was completely unproductive at writing and life in general. Now that I'm working again I like having the structure and it makes me slightly more productive in my free time to write. I think I could give you a run for your money at the title queen of distraction! Thanks for a great post and good tips!
ReplyDeleteGood morning, Glynis! I'd be more than happy to share the crown of squirrely, LOL. Isn't amazing how when given the time we've wished for (sorry it was due to unemployment!) we can squander the gift so easily? Changing routine isn't a good thing if you don't have a back up plan in place. Thanks for sharing. Structure is a good thing!!! (Audra)
ReplyDeleteBoy, do I get all of this, Audra. The luxury of not having to leave the house to go to work presents all those issues you mentioned. I mean, getting lost at Hobby Lobby is so easy to do. I had to change my way of thinking. I have a job. My job is to write. To produce the written word. My friends and family have to understand that, too. So, Hobby Lobby is treated as a reward. Lunch with friends has to be carved out and planned for. Though if my writing goals are where they should be, it can also be spontaneous. Set your goals, then make a realistic plan to achieve them. Oh, and give yourself some grace when you don't meet them. So long as that's not a regular occurrence. ;-)
ReplyDeleteSo true!! By the end of the day, I want to feel accomplished as a writer, not having given to the temptations of lunch, Hobby Lobby, etc. Besides, once I leave the house, even if I do make a quick stop at HL, I'm faced with the same problem - if I'm not home to write, I'm certainly not home to hone my skills on my Cricut or sewing machine!! Good luck to both of us, LOL!! (Audra)
DeleteThis is a great post, Audra. I relate to so much of it. I am the same way when it comes to going out for lunch, then getting home two hours later than planned. I also can make a great schedule on paper, but it doesn't seem to hold up. As a substitute teacher, I try to make good use of my summers off, but here it is mid-July, and I still haven't done much. I do have another job, so I'm not completely free. I also relate to your office being a catch all. I keep trying to clean and organize mine. The problem is, I really need an entire day where that is all I do, and that doesn't happen. But I will keep working. Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteSandy, your comments always touch my heart :). I'm okay with my office becoming that catchall over the Christmas holiday when EVERYTHING needs to find a temporary home so our living area looks festive! But time? I need to stick to my schedule, too. Focus on what's important, right??
DeleteEven as I say that, I'm cleaning out our bedroom for a new bed to be delivered. So much clutter, so many clothes! And, I hate to say it, dust bunnies have absolutely thrived!! Must include regular dusting in schedule!!!
The blessing/curse of time! It's a blessing when you're productive, but it's SO easy to be distracted!
ReplyDeleteI use a bullet journal to schedule my day. I realized yesterday that I need to write out my day's plans the night before rather than in the morning. Otherwise I get started on the day and the planner is neglected (today is a great example - it's after 10:00 and my planner page is still blank.)
I know that if I write something in my planner, there's a 90% chance it will get done today or tomorrow. If I don't write it in, it gets smooshed to the back of my brain.
But that focus on what I need to accomplish is often missing. Sometimes I think it's because I have too many things I want to do and spend too much time planning and thinking about things I will never have time for because I spend too much time planning and thinking. *eyeroll*
Hobby Lobby is the source of many of those things, LOL!
I've taken a page from Ruthy's book in the past year. I get up early and write. Six days a week. I might not get a lot of words in, but I do get words in.
Some days I fail - didn't sleep well the night before or we have plans that take us out of the house super early (like hitting a trail before the parking area at the trailhead gets filled up!) but it's becoming a habit and my writing goals are being met. :-)
Thanks for the peek into your retirement - both the ups and downs!
Hi Jan! Yes, there are so many pros to retirement, but the cons can be killers unless tamed. The bullet journal concept is great. I have a moleskine planner that simply puts the week days on the left side and a lined page opposite. Very simple, very helpful for me. Though I love all the cool planners I find on Amazon and the ones promoted by fellow authors, they are way too "planned" for me, if that makes sense. I'm intimidated by them and then don't write anything down - what good is that?
DeleteSimple and focused. I make a list of the things to accomplish over the week and check off them off as they get done.
Now words? That's another matter. LOL. They will come. I know they will.
Happy trails to you this summer!!
I feel this. Sometimes I think I'm more productive during the school year when I have a set work schedule. I have to plan all my writing around my school schedule, and until my son graduated two weeks ago, I'd have to factor in my kids' schedules, too. I had to put myself on a schedule (somewhat) during the summer. Not that I follow it, but it helps to have some idea of how the day will go.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Dana. For years, you focused on routine - go to school, go to work, clean house as time allowed :). For me, that's a lot of years of routine, LOL! I hope your summer schedule becomes habit before the kiddos have to go back to school!! (Audra)
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