7 Painless Ways to Be More Focused When Working From a Home Office

1. Stick 1–3 simple directives in the physical locations where you tend to lose focus.

This is my most recent attempt at not getting stuck in spots around my apartment, and it seems to be working more days than not. When I say I get “stuck”, I mean that there are places in my apartment where I regularly lose focus and end up working on whatever menial task presents itself. For instance, the kitchen sink is my mind’s Bermuda Triangle in the morning. I get lost in thought, all my good intentions pull a disappearing act, and I fall into wiping down counters, feeding cats, snacking, etc. Before I realize it, two hours have passed and I’m still nursing a now cold cup of coffee. Sticky notes to the rescue!

Strategically placed sticky notes can kick-start your focus when you’re stuck:

• Put 1–3 sticky notes where you tend to get stuck, and in all-caps write a short, fairly perennial directive on each one. I have “CHECK WORK EMAIL”, “JOURNAL”, and “[MOST PRESSING CLIENT’S NAME]” posted above my kitchen sink.
• When you pick one to do, move it left, right, up, or down so you are visually and physically cued to do it and to remind you later that you either did it or intended to. Moving the sticky notes will also…