How to stay focused at work during the holidays

How to stay focused at work during the holidaysEvery year, as the weather gets colder and holiday shopping ads departure appearing on TV (though admittedly those start showing up around Labor Day now), even the fruchtwein diligent and focused employees find their attention wandering a bit. Theres a lot going ontravel plans, potluck food appearing like magic in the office, everyone feeling a little more festive and socialand the daily grind can get lost in all of that. So how do you keep on top of your actual job, despite holiday disruptions? googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) Be prepared to shut out distractions.This doesnt mean you have to hunch over your desk like Ebenezer Scrooge, frowning disapprovingly at your cheerful slacker colleagues. It just means finding ways to keep your own attention focused on the daily tasks you need to accomplish. For some, that means wearing noise-canceling headphones while working on a project or platzdeck chenting blocks of head down time where you dont allow yourself to be distracted by things like online shopping, social media, or extracurricular conversations with coworkers. Its time to be honest with yourself and figure out what works best at keeping you on-task. If that means setting calendar reminders for everything, do it. If it involves using an app to keep you from wandering to particular distracting websites, go for it.Try to avoid multitasking, because that can lead toflexible attention span. If youre giving all of your effort to a particular task, youre more likely to get it done. Even if youre usually an A+ multitasker, try to limit the number of things youre doing at once.Lean in to (some of) the distractions.This may seem counterintuitive to 1, but its also important to embrace the non-work stuff as part of your day. Its far more realistic to plan for small bursts of non-work activity than to think youll be able to shut it out completely. Be koranvers to schedule some breaks when you can check those flight prices or stop and grab a cookie with a colleague. If you start making the down time part of your workday (in small chunks), itll be easier to move from holiday mode back to work beast mode. Moderation is key hereits not an hour of work, hour of goofing off proposition. Think of it as more like a standard coffee break, but instead youre taking a few minutes to check out your Facebook friends pets in various holiday sweaters.Come up with a rest of year plan.Chances are, your workload has a combination of things that will need to be accomplished either now or in the near future, and things that can reasonably wait until January. Its time to sit down and make a comprehensive list of must-dos, should-dos, and can-do-laters. Your to-do list should be realistic and have milestones/deadlines included wherever possible so that you can plan your time. If you need to, talk through your end of year priorities with your boss to make sure youre hitting ever ything you need to do before everyone checks out. This has the added benefit of showing your boss how organized and driven you are, even as everyone else might already be starting to slip a little.While youre making the list, also make note of what youll need from other people. This time of year people can be in and out of the office, so if theres something important that youll need from Andy by mid-December, start thinking (and talking) about it now in case Andys planning on taking time off. If youve waited until the last minute and then youre faced with Andys Bye, see you next year Out of Office message, its too late.Reset your work-life boundaries.Setting a clear line between your work day and your personal time can help you stay focused at work if you know you can get all the fun stuff or personal logistics accomplished later. If youre usually a stay late kind of person, start leaving at a set time every day. If youre usually a wander in a little late in the morning kind of pers on, start putting in extra effort to get to work on time. And whenever possible, you should avoid taking work homeinstead, set a realistic workload and to-do list for the official workday. That way, family/friend/personal time gets its own spotlight in your day, separate from work, and youll feel less inclined to catch up on the outside stuff while youre at work.Dont forget to take care of yourself.The time leading up to the holidays can often take a physical toll as well, if youre indulging in special food, more drinks than usual, and/or later bedtimes to account for social activities. All of those can set you up for failure at work and make you feel lousy, so try to set up some extra healthy habits to compensate this time of year.Take short walks and exercise breaks instead of coffee breaks.Stay hydrated (and not with egg nog).Practice some desk yoga.Aim for half an hour more sleep.Bring a healthy lunch so you can sneak in some extra calories later.These can all help you feel bett er during the workday and more ready to devote your time and mental sharpness to accomplishing what needs to be done.No matter what the distractions are between Thanksgiving and the New Year, staying organized is not a lost cause. Its all about being realistic and developing some extra coping mechanisms to defeat those its the holidays, woo impulses and stay productive. Fully embrace the good cheer of the seasonjust make sure its on your to-do list, next to all the other things you want to get done.