Keeping on track is tough whether you work at home or not–but when you are working in your home business, there usually isn’t a boss or well-meaning coworker to bring you back to reality and keep you motivated to withstand those interruptions. But, I have also found that when I am working at home–some interruptions are valid and legitimate, and some I conjure up myself to keep from having to buckle down…
I can think up all sorts of reasons NOT to work–and what I don’t think up, I have plenty of other people around who can participate. I can very quickly convince myself that my kids need my help or I need to make that complicated dish for dinner or the windows cannot possibly go one more day without my washing them. Those are not real, urgent interruptions to keep me from working, buy ones I invent myself when I am having trouble staying focused or things just are not coming easily for me.
What are some of my classic time-wasters? Cleaning out a closet or unloading the dishwasher (which might just lead to reorganizing the spice cupboard.) For me, it takes due diligence not to give in to these imagined interruptions. After all, there are plenty of REAL ones that come along and demand my attention–if I waste so much of my time on things I dream up myself, then when the real interruptions present themselves, I really get into a time and motivation bind and then I start kicking myself for not using my time well!
The dishwasher can wait, as can those windows. Besides, I’ll feel so much better about myself and my home business work in the long run if I keep myself on task and don’t let myself get sucked into the interruption vortex.