SCHEDULE TIME

One way you can avoid interruptions is by scheduling time when you are not to be interrupted. This can be something you tell others and something you tell yourself as well! If you set aside an hour to review some financial records for whatever reason, make it clear that family is not to interrupt you during this time. Turn off your cell phone and shut the door to your room. And don't allow yourself to wander away from your project as well.

You can prepare for this scheduled time by making sure everything is taken care of first. The children are fed and have supervision or other plans. You have a snack with you or have eaten. You don't have any other pressing projects that need tending so you can put those off for your scheduled time.

When you schedule time in which you should remain uninterrupted you know that you have no reason to do anything other than tend to the work at hand. There is no reason to entertain your children or to wander away for something to eat. Unless it's a dire emergency, that time should be treated as sacred.

You might need to get tough with yourself during this scheduled time as well. When you feel an urge to get up and do the dishes or tend to another chore, tell yourself that this isn't the time to do that. Your time right now is scheduled just as if you were at work or the doctor's office or were sitting in church. You don't handle other tasks when you're doing these things, so don't try to handle something else when you're scheduled to take care of chores or responsibilities.

TUNE OUT

Another way to avoid needless interruption is to tune out. This means no television, MP3 player, food, and anything else when you're working on a particular project. Close the blinds if you tend to stare out the window. Keep the pets out of the room in which you're working.

While some background music may work in some situations, even having that can mean constantly changing the channel or skipping songs. You then realize the battery on your MP3 player is low and it needs to be plugged in … and while you're up you may as well get a soda from the fridge … and while you're in the kitchen you should probably do these dishes … and so on. If you find that you cannot keep background music on without being interrupted, give that up as well.

You may also need to be brutally honest with yourself in this regard. How often do you keep the cell phone on or have the television running because you want to be interrupted from your project? When something is boring or tedious or otherwise annoying it's easy to allow an interruption so that we don't need to keep working on that boring project. And then we don't need to take the blame ourselves for not keeping up with it! After all, it was mom that called on the phone or the interesting news story that distracted us, so it's not really our fault, right?

Tuning out is necessary in order to avoid interruption and to get the job at hand done. Remember this when you're tempted to keep the television running or want to listen to music or do something else while trying to concentrate on one particular task.

COMMUNICATE

Another way to handle interruptions is to communicate clearly with those that may be interrupting you. For many, it's difficult to tell your children or friends or someone else that you cannot be interrupted right now. But you need to learn how to do this so you don't allow interruptions to take over your schedule.

Usually it's good to let someone know that you cannot be interrupted right now, but can make time for them later. If your children interrupt when you're working, tell them that you'll talk to them after dinner. If your mother calls while you're trying to get that attic cleaned out, tell her that you'll call back in two hours.

If you make an appointment with someone to take care of something then they won't be put off or hurt by the fact that you're not dropping everything right at the moment. This will also keep the immediate interruption from becoming a large interruption. It's much easier to quickly put off someone and return to your task at hand than it is to take the time they need for their concerns, and then try to return to your work.

In some cases, you can even tell someone why you need to put them off. Try saying, "Unfortunately I'm right in the middle of a project right now and can't step away. Can I get back with you before the end of the day?" When

someone knows you're putting them off for a good reason, they are less likely to be upset or offended.

Remember that an interruption will turn into a major distraction only if you allow it to. If there is nothing critical about your interruption and it can be put off, get into the habit of doing just that.