Pedro Wants To Talk To You!

Like many, you may suffer from C.D.I.O. (Computer Distraction and Interruption Overload). I used to suffer from this focus disabling, income disintegrating disorder myself. Having three monitors I thought it was great to have my email open, my Instant messenger open, and a forum or two open on a spare screen just so I could check in from time to time. In fact, my Instant messenger wasn’t just a single application, but it was AOL, MSN, YAHOO, and ICQ all rolled into one. It was fantastic! I felt like I could be in touch with anyone, everyone, all the time!

Until slowly over time an unfortunate process began to take hold. I wasn’t getting anything done!!

If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. From an annoying antivirus popup telling me it’s updating to a telephone call, to old friends wanting to chat to me, to some guy named Pedro wanting to add me to his messenger.

“Hello, this is Pedro, I want to talk to you!”

It was out of control, I was out of control!

Then one day I was listening to a time management audio by Brian Tracy and it hit me like a ton of bricks, it’s what us C.D.I.O sufferers call ‘a moment of clarity’. I finally decided enough is enough! No more messenger, no more forums, no more email. I desperately needed to take control of my time and my computer instead of it having control over me.

Therefore, I’ve developed this 12 step program that all those suffering from C.D.I.O. should immediately implement. I have used it myself to great success and hope you do as well…

The 12 step program for beating C.D.I.O.

1. Uninstall your Instant messenger. Yes, I know it’s a drastic move, if you aren’t ready for that then at least set it so that it doesn’t start up when you start your computer. This will keep you from turning it on as often and add hours of productivity to your work days. Remember, one brief interruption can cost you 10 minutes of lost focus. If you have to use your I.M. client then only turn it on for a brief period of time at the END of the day.
2. Stop checking your email 50 times a day. Check it twice. Once in the morning, once in the evening. If you need to stay in touch with a few key people throughout the day then set it up so your email only checks every few hours instead of every few minutes, and close the program out whenever you can.
3. If you have a laptop, get out of the house! Get away from your phone, your office, go somewhere you won’t be disturbed or interrupted. Starbucks, a library, or any Wifi coffee shop will suffice. You’ll notice you’re MUCH more productive when you’re focused on a single task without interruptions.
4. Don’t answer that phone, that’s what voicemail is for! Instead of ‘REACTING’ to your technology, master it, let it serve YOU. Let voicemail be your secretary and schedule one time in the day to call everyone back at YOUR convenience.
5. Quit wasting all your time chatting in the forums! Yes, they can be fun, and you may learn a thing or two, but they are really giant time-wasters. In fact, I recommend going on a one-month forum hiatus, you’ll be surprised at how much you get done. Of course, when you return set a limit to how much time you spend on the forums, I now only spend about 10 to 15 minutes a day reading up on all the forums just to keep in touch with what’s going on.
6. Control your software. All those annoying software programs that popup to tell you they are expired, updating, or downloading new virus libraries, all have options and settings to stop them from annoying you. If they don’t, uninstall the program and never look back! Nothing is more annoying then being in the middle of something important only to get distracted by something as menial as one of your software programs telling you it’s checking for updates.
7. Stop checking to see how much money you’re making, or not making. This step requires pure self discipline and is one of the hardest steps to master. If you find yourself checking your sales stats every hour you truly need to stop. You’re going to make the same amount of money whether you check 20 times a day or once. Actually, I take that back, if you check only once you’ll be making more because you’ll be wasting less time.
8. Avoid cool new software that will only distract you. Windows Vista has a new sidebar on its desktop which lets you add things called widgets. One of the default widgets pre-installed with Vista is a RSS widget that puts live news right on your desktop. In theory this sounds great right? Let me say, it’s just another horrible way to get sidetracked and off focus. When you want to see your RSS feeds I recommend you use a RSS reader and do it at the end of the day. Having anything right on your computer desktop that could take you off task is a C.D.I.O. relapse waiting to happen.
9. Have a plan. It makes it much harder to get distracted or be taken off task if you’ve got an agenda. If you’re working online then have a to-do list, an outline, some kind of plan for the day. I personally use a fantastic to-do list program called Swift Todo-List.
10. Stay focused when searching! Yes, it sounds easy. However, have you ever gone searching for something online to find yourself 20 minutes later on a totally different path? When browsing the web it’s incredibly easy to get sidetracked, with popup windows, advertisements, and links all designed to take you off course you have to stick to your path and be very disciplined about it. If this is a problem for you I recommend setting a time limit when you have to do long or in-depth searches.
11. One window, one task, one at a time. If you’re like me you usually have several windows open for different things you are working on throughout the day. However, I’ve learned it’s much easier to only have windows and programs open that are directly related to the task at hand. Therefore, to stay on target keep a tidy desktop with only task related windows and programs open.
12. Take a break! Yes, this may sound counter productive, but it’s absolutely critical. If you take a break you’ll be able to clear your head, regain your focus, and come back ready to work without the need to get distracted.

There you have it, my 12 step approach to beating C.D.I.O. and regaining control over your PC, your time, and your income! Best of luck!