How in the devil do you stay focused?

I wish I could say I stay focused - but I don't always do that. However, if I find myself with several ideas or projects nearing completion I end to focus on one and complete it. The others may suffer from neglect for a short time but at least something gets DONE. All the "in process" projects in the world won't make as much money as one completed site or project that has been launched online.

Whenever I realize I've spent several days working on various sites or projects without launching a site or completing anything - I know it's time to re-focus and attack one thing until it's done.

kay

I just outsource everything because I know I can't stay focused.

Although you still gotta focus on how and what needs to be outsourced.

When I find myself brain scattered, I get up and go out side for a bit. Fresh air seems to help me keep my focus back. Then I just focus one project at a time.

Make a mental list of what is more pressing, then list them down on paper in the order that you want them to become completed. Just like making goals........to finish things. Then start with one at a time and soon you will be to the end of the pile........

I have the same problem....

Lack of knowledge is problem for some people. Now what I see, what I read, its all known to me. But I dont make money online.

Definitely try and find the most important thing that needs to be done, and concentrate on that. Dont move on until thats done, always one thing at a time and do the most important task first

I stay focused by deciding to stay focused. I don't outsource everything to avoid being tempted to outsource my life someday.

Great decision makes great men.

Quite often I just go out and do my things. When I come back I am more focused to get it done.

Sometimes I just need to focus on goals: when project A is done the goal is... etc.

But I am sure it depends from person to person. Some people think about the monetary objectives too, and it seem to work pretty well for them

I think about what I will do with the Money the deeds will generate and if that is not working I will pick the top 3 activities that will produce the greatest results. Once they are done I simply repeat, new things pop up and I just fit them in. Knowing "Why" you are doing this to begin with is a MUST to have any staying power in almost any endeavor.

Jason

Priorities, I can't stress it enough, do what's more important first, if you can outsource the rest, then there you go, although it doesn't solve everything, it definitely lessens the stress on your brain

I have a bulletin board next to my computer where I put what need to be done for the day/week. When I write it down, something in me makes me work hard to cross it off.

When I have to do a lot of things. The first thing I do is list them down. That way, I can do them one at a time. Then I exercise the five minute rule where I promise myself that I will work for five minutes straight then rest after that. After that, I become surprised as to how much stuff I finished.

Of course, I am not claiming that I can stay focused all the time. It is just my way to cope and still finish everything that I need to do. Of course, my day is not dedicated to work alone. I go out, I exercise, I do some household chores. It is a great way to stretch out while still doing important things for myself.

It sounds like you have to prioritize and figure out which tasks take precedence over others. You cannot do everything all at once, so prioritize all these tasks and accomplish the high-level tasks first (one at a time, of course) and then move down the list as they're finished!

Don't try to multi-task and do everything at once, because that will slow you down and is very inefficient.

Paul

Hey Alpa

We have all ben in your situation, and I still fight it everyday, but I have a way to get over it, using Four Magic Words which I hang above my monitor. I have written about it in a little detail in a free ebook I released only to War room members (I see you are a member). Its a short ebook and has great reviews so it does work, maybe it will help you.

http://www.warriorforum.com/war-room...e-forever.html

I think I've used something like that Pomodoro technique. One of my roommates made the point to me when we were in college that I needed to do better at separating work and play. Maybe it's just being too anxious, but that's so hard for me. But in the midst of our theses, he was writing a 200 page thesis that ended up published, got up at the same time as me, and was playing video games by 6:00 every night.

The trouble for me is that I now have kids- so I can't just say, "well- it's 6:00, time to put work aside and just enjoy my night" since the kids sometimes need things that aren't always fun. I think giving myself a rigorous time schedule for working on a specific project will do me good.

Also- Venture- thanks for the link- I've downloaded that am am reading it now.

I agree with focussing on one project and going outdoors for some fresh air.

Sometimes im working on a project and get inspiration for others.
Just write them down and pick them up later when you're working on the other project.
Making notes on you phone helps in this case. Review them and expand on the note when you have the time.

You may think you're multitasking, but in truth, you're still doing one incomplete thing at a time. Your brain can only process one thought at a time.

While you're IM'ing, you may be LISTENING to a webinar, but you aren't hearing and retaining the information while you're writing your IM.

My friend Rachel keeps an hourglass on her desk so that she remembers to do one thing really well at a time. The sand gets from the top to the bottom of the hourglass one grain at a time - and she's one of the most productive people I know!

Well I can tell you a hundred things that you should not do... out of my own personal experience... if somebody can tell one thing that I should do to be successful.

I have a process. It has been tested and proven effective.

All of my "students" go through it.

One page goal sheet.
4 page "White paper"
10 page report on what they think they want to do. So step one is to THINK. 10 pages may not sound like much, but, it is hard to do. I help by asking questions.

ONCE they have a 10 page overview, they create a "PictoGrigm" (a simple picture) on their Whiteboard. This gives them something to look at every day from their computers.

The White Board has a Pyramid on it, which represents TIME it takes to get to the goal. There are steps on the pyramid. These are put there from a BACKWARD CHAINING process, from the top down.

These are broken into TIME increments, with action steps.

Using this technique gives you a very clear PICTURE of where you are going, what you are trying to achieve and the steps you MUST take to get there. There are nuances of course, but the basic jist is

have something you can SEE every single day. Something to look at, with goals and pictures of your success on it...and SEE the plan of action it takes to get there.

IF you sit and stare and don't DO, then there is a problem with your view from the top of the Pyramid.

You don't need a White board even, get a roll of clear drawer "liner" and put it on a piece of cardboard, works great. Or Staples type places have rolls of plastic to cover books, paper etc.

HAVE something to look at everyday and a REASON for wanting what you see to come true.

It works.

gjabiz

Outsource the things you hate doing.

Also, who says you really have to stay focused all the time? You're your own boss, you're not gonna lose your job if you don't stay focused 100% of the time.

Sound proof headphones and Pandora internet radio.

be interested in what you do most of all –that way it's not work

Other helpful possibilities:
1. While you've got that legal pad - prioritize the items according to importance. Then rewrite your list, based on the numbers you used to prioritize.

2. If you still get overwhelmed looking at the list, only write ONE item per page. That way, you're only looking at one time instead of an entire list.

Most people have a hard time staying focused and you can see that in all the decent sites that have not yet hit the big stage yet. For instance do you think john chow or darren rowse had a problem staying focused? I bet they did, but found a way to overcome it and now they are making bank.

This is a problem I seem to be getting a lot at the moment,but there are some great suggestions here though!outsourcing sounds like the way forward.

Some good ideas! I sometimes lose track of everything that I need to do. Paralysis by analysis sort of. When I make a to do list and put priorities first, it will bug me enough to do try to finish the list. I have to have it in front of my eyeballs to make it work best though.

I can’t always stay focus on one thing. Because if I focus on one the others may suffer from neglect. Thats why I need to manage my time.