How to Improve Your Focus

Let’s talk about focus & productivity.

I recently did a post on 10 Productivity Tips to Help Your Business. Since that post, COVID-19 has made it’s impact on the world and many have found themselves having to work from home. Generally, most of my work is done from home. I’d probably say only 15% of my work is picking up the camera and the other 85% of my business is managing emails, messages, timelines, planning, contracts, invoices, bookkeeping, editing, galleries, my website, & blogging. I love organization & getting stuff done, but what can be tough about working from home is getting & keeping your focus - especially when you are there pretty much all of the time. So, I thought I would share a few tips on how to get & stay focused when you work from home.

Start Your Day Right

1. When your alarm goes off, get up. Don’t hit snooze 5 times. Start your morning. Shower, get dressed, & take care of yourself. Drink a glass of water. Drink some coffee. Eat some breakfast. Have a few minutes of quiet time. Don’t check your phone when your alarm goes off. I’m serious. I’m a hard core achiever. The moment I pick up my phone to do anything other than turn off my alarm, I’m already thinking about everything I need to do instead of doing what is necessary to start my day off on the right foot.

2. Take the time to get ready. I know I mentioned this above, but I think it’s so important to do this. I’m not saying to get fancy. I’m saying that whatever it looks like for you to feel like your best self, even if you are working from home - do it. For me, that’s showering, brushing my teeth, moisturizing, putting on some light makeup, & putting on clothes that aren’t my jammies. Because I know that when I take care of myself, I feel good, which stimulates my brain, which helps me to be more productive. Everyone has their own way of doing this, so your way probably looks different than mine. The point is - do it and do it for yourself!

Set the Atmosphere

1. Designate your workspace. Find a place that is specifically for work that will encourage you to be the most productive. Make sure it’s tidy. Add a few personal touches like a mood board, pictures, posters, plants, etc. (your workspace needs to be inviting & enjoyable).

2. Let sunlight in. When it’s dark in my work space, I feel like I wind down quickly & tiredness settles in. I will open up every curtain & set of blinds in our home to let as much light in as I can. Even science proves that natural light helps with concentration, reduces stress & anxiety, can boost your immune system (vitamin D), helps your vision, & makes you happy (sunlight helps our bodies release serotonin & endorphins).

3. Burn a candle, melt waxes, or diffuse essential oils (optional). Okay, so I love candles. As long as they smell good, I’ve never really cared to understand the science behind the scents - but I do prefer non-toxic soy/beeswax candles (without paraffin). Besides candles, I love running our diffuser. It’s pretty much on all of the time. Now, there is a huge science behind essential oils & aromatherapy. Aromatherapy is great for your wellness because it stimulates receptors in your nose that send messages to your brain about how you are feeling - physically & emotionally. Each scents affects your receptors differently, which means they can be used to target specific areas of your emotions or body. I also use essential oils directly (I dilute them though). Plus, who doesn’t like having a home that smells good?

4. Turn off the tv & limit the time you spend on your phone. As much as I love watching re-runs of Gilmore Girls, Friends, The Office, Parks & Rec, Scrubs, & New Girl - I can’t do it while I work. Even though I’ve seen them all enough times to know what is going to happen, I still love them so much that it has enough of my attention to remove my focus from a task. Did you know that it takes over 25 minutes to refocus when you get distracted? For some of us, this also might mean staying off of our phone or staying off of social media during work time. A large part of my job as a photographer is managing my social outlets, so while I can’t eliminate it from my workflow, I do try to limit my time on social media or even allot certain times for it.

5. Put on music or a podcast (optional). Music or listening to a podcast can help improve your mood, increase productivity, & help you to absorb new information. There are definitely certain tasks that I need complete silence for, so I don’t always listen to something. I’ve read that the best time to listen to music or a podcast is when you are doing something that is familiar so that you don’t compromise your focus.

Strategize Your Time

Make a list or a schedule. Or do both. If you don’t have a goal, you’ll miss it every time, right? This helps create order, prioritize tasks, hold you accountable, & makes that list of the million things you have to do - manageable! It also helps you see when you need to get started, when you need to take breaks, when you need to do something else, & when you need to stop.

Do one thing at a time. Doing multiple tasks at once can cut down productivity and it also makes it much harder to zero-in on the details that are really important. You may have heard of the concept of “batch working”, which is essentially dividing up your workflow instead of jumping from task to task.

Don’t Skip out on Self-Care

If you find yourself getting stuck in a cycle, feeling burned out, losing touch with the people you love, tying your personal worth to what you do, and you can’t remember the last time you had fun - then check out this post about why self-care is important. I have been here so many times & honestly, it’s still tough sometimes to not to feel guilty about taking care of myself. I’ve learned that when I take care of myself, I am able to give so much more of myself to others.

The Truth about Focus

1. Focus is a muscle. The more you use it & the more you train it, the easier focusing will become. Focus is built on healthy habits.

2. Focus is pro-active & not reactive. Decide where & how you are going to spend your time rather than reacting to when things happen.

3. Focus is about quality, efficiency, & intentionality. It’s about mastering a few things rather than doing many different things and doing none of them well.

4. Focus is not about perfection. Sometimes, you may fail or make a mistake. With that often comes self-doubt & discouragement. The way to achieve your goals is to try again. Sometimes you might have to try something else. Sometimes you might have to step back. Sometimes you might have to take a break. But never ever throw in the towel.

5. Remember that you are a human. What you do is not who you are. While what we do helps the world go round, all of the achievements, success, & money in the world can’t touch what you are worth, friend.

XO, Dakota