30 minutes of Netflix. A quick scroll through Insta. A cheeky text message. A quick trip to the kitchen for yet another cuppa. Reorganising the sock drawer. Just some of the extensive range of methods that I use for procrastination. Let’s face it, it’s a mammoth task to stay focused when you’re easily distracted.

I’m the sort of person that gets distracted half way through telling a story and will just stop talking. It’s becoming a real problem! If you think that’s a nightmare, you should see me when I’m trying to keep focus whilst doing work. Any of this sound familiar to anyone? Maybe it’s just me? I’ve even had to stop doing work with friends because I can so easily drag them into my bubble of distraction; soon before you know it, we’re all off task and getting no work done.

But, there is hope!

For those of you thinking my situation sounds familiar, never fear because there is hope! Here’s some of the best tips that I’ve learnt for managing distractions so you can get work done.

1. Find an environment with minimal distractions. It may take you a while to find the right place to work. You might have to try a few different places. (Here’s a really good blog to help you with some ideas of where to try!) Nowhere will be completely distraction free but there’ll be somewhere that you get less distracted than other places. For me it’s the silent floor of the library (and not telling anyone that I’m there).
2. Have a set time for work and a set time for socialising. If you have set times for each then the two won’t blend into one. Leave the catch up for the social time and get your head into the book. In the same way, don’t let work creep into your social time. You will be more productive and you will get more work done.
3. If you’re going to listen to music, make sure it’s instrumental tracks. Otherwise, you’ll be singing along instead of working. In my experience, Bach is a really great study buddy!
4. Download (and make use of) the Flora app. In the app you can set how long you want to work for and then it will encourage you to not go into other apps. If you go the whole time without touching your phone a tree will appear in your virtual garden. YAY! If you do cave and go into an app, you kill a tree. BOO!
5. Focus on one task at a time. Tasks at uni can build up, there’s no denying it. There’s no way you can keep focus when you’re thinking of all that. Take it one task at a time. To do lists are a great way of doing this because you can write things down in order of priority and then just work your way through them systematically.
6. Get everything you need together before you start. Then you don’t have an excuse to keep getting up and getting things.

Do you have any tips for staying productive when you’re easily distracted? If so, share them with me in the comments below.