Blogging Truths Be Told: Distractions Do Exactly What They are Meant to Do

Okay, instead of continuing on with a third installment of discussion on “Know When to Adapt”, I decided to test your level of adaptability with a new topic altogether. I’ve been living today’s topic lately and thought I’d share it with you while it’s fresh on my mind. So, let’s do a dive into the disruptive nature of distractions.

Distractions . . . so easy to fall for and so challenging to get away from. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that distractions have their time and place. There are welcomed distractions that usually fall into the scheduled variety. Meaning — they should be scheduled into your daily routine when and where they’re not drawing your work momentum down the drain.

Let me say it a different way. It’s perfectly fine to have non-work related items on your daily to-dos, but just make sure and schedule them into your day (preferably at the end of your work day, if possible). When those non-work related items are not scheduled, then it becomes very easy for them to take over because you don’t have a dedicated place or space for them to go. So, they tend to run rampant and can easily take over your entire day if you let them.

So, don’t let them.

Blogging is an activity that takes some focus in mental capacity, consistency in follow-through, and dedicated effort. It takes up your time. And when you give your time over to distractions that will ALWAYS come, then blogging tasks may very well get placed on the backburner for another day, week, or month, even. I’ve been there and done that.

And while I do feel that distractions have taken over in my life from time to time and caused me to not be as stellar in the quality I deliver, I’ve managed to show up consistently 99.9% of the time . . . for 3 years now. Don’t get me wrong, though. I’m not tooting my own horn . . . far from it. I’m just simply relaying that even those of us that may have been able to hold on to the consistency part, still struggle with distractions affecting other aspects of their blogging experience.

Case in point, I totally like getting my posts started before the day of posting them. But guess what? I actually didn’t start this post until the day of and I posted it a lot later than I usually do on Fridays. And honestly, I’m feeling a little rushed in getting this post out, because my Friday’s are jam-packed and I need to move on to the other items on my list. So, I’m not really sure if this post is being given the quality time it needs in order to get my point across. The overall outcome is that I still showed up, but I didn’t show up like I truly wanted to.

Now, you might be wondering what I mean by “distractions”. Well, I’ve given you a hint or two by mentioning that distractions come in the form of non-work related activities. And those types of activities can consist of rest and relaxation methods, entertainment, social events and forms of social communication, etc. But, those aren’t the only distractions that come into play in the course of a blogging day.

Work-related activities and personal (life) events can formulate some distractions for the intended go-getter, as well. Some of these activities may look like . . . 

• regular work items that were not on the schedule for the day but became immediate priorities all of a sudden.
• work items that get in the way of other work items like emails, phone calls, and social media management.
• reactionary work items that resulted from previous work you completed but had no idea would later show up on your calendar as extensions of the original to-do items.
• unexpected emergency situations that affect you individually or your family and must be addressed before anything else (including blogging or any other work-related items).

So, it’s safe to say that there are distractions that we voluntarily let come in our personal space; and there are those distractions that we have no control over and come unannounced and with no invitation in hand.

The question then becomes — how do you respond to distractions (of all varieties) when they come? How do you let them affect what you do in the course of your day and how your level of productivity plays out for that day?

With some careful observation, I’ve found that, in the way some of us conduct our routines (including myself), we tend to think that distractions are going to act in a manner that caters to our productive well-beings. This notion is far from the truth, my friend. I should know. I’m currently battling some distractions that I have voluntarily welcomed and some that have seemed to latch on to me without being invited. 

So, I know what I’m saying when I make the following statement: distractions will wreak havoc on the lackadaisical, nonchalant, indifferent, and unprepared. Why? Because those types of individuals refuse to be ready for the onslaught of nonproductive behaviors that distractions will bring their way. 

I’m telling you from personal experience that it’s easy to get caught up in the intricate web that distractions weave for those who refuse to deal with them when they come. So, what can this type of individual do to turn things around and prepare him- or herself to be battle-ready?

Well, for starters, he or she can recognize that distractions will do exactly what they’re created to do: distract us from the task at hand. And secondly, we can understand that how we respond to them determines the differences between the successful and unsuccessful management of said distractions.

Blogging’s no exception to the rule above. 

If you let them, distractions will take you off focus, direction, and pace in your blogging journey. And before you know it, a whole week has gone by and your blogging intentions weren’t carried out in the manner in which you hoped they would be or weren’t carried out at all. 

You know . . . I personally go through these mini pitfalls where distractions present a time-suck that I can’t erase. (After all, you can’t get back time once it’s spent). And, I’ve learned to rid myself of them after they’ve had a temporary period of time to destructively party at my expense. But, I’d rather not voluntarily let them in the front door. And for the one’s that forcibly let themselves in, I need to tighten up my strategy for managing them more efficiently.

Now, I don’t want to make this topic all about me, but I’m definitely the inspiration for this blog post today. I decided to tell on myself. Yes, I’m coming clean, so I can get out of the temporary unproductive rut I’m in. If I could, I’d like to blame my off-trackedness on the back-to-school blitz and the busyness that the beginning of the school year brings on my household, especially with the new hybrid learning environment (virtual and in-person school) my 11-year-old is taking on.

But, I’m not going to blame the back-to-school blitz. I knew that was coming. I also know that there are demands with extended family members that will pull me away from my work routine from time to time and those situations will just have to be managed in the best humanly possible way. I also know that there may be days that I don’t feel my best and it will probably come out in my output. Down days can be expected from time to time, too. So, no blame gets placed on any of these circumstances.

What I do place blame on is knowing that the distractions are going to come (and letting them party hardy) but then expecting productivity measures to stay high on the performance scale. What in the world! No, sir. No, ma’am. Distractions do exactly what they’re meant to do: distract. And if you don’t manage them in a timely and constructive manner, don’t expect to stay on pace with your productivity goals in your blogging journey. It just ain’t gonna happen . . .

Thought I was going to leave you hanging, didn’t you? No, I’m not about to present a problem and then leave out a probable solution or two or several. So, tune in next “Blogging Truths Be Told”. I’ll have some results-oriented stuff to say on the topic. Hope to see you then.