5 Ways to Deal with Distractions When You’re Supposed to be Writing

It happens to us all, writers and non-writers alike.

You have a blog entry, a case study, a white paper, or an article due TODAY! Suddenly, you feel the need to do laundry or dust your baseboards or call your mom. This happens to even the best writers. It doesn’t mean you aren’t a good writer.

Here’s some ways I’ve learned to write when I’m distracted:

1. Define your distractions. Sometimes, writers think of things as distractions that may not be. Your dog bringing you his leash and giving you the look (you know which one) may or may not be a distraction to you. Depends on how much you like your dog. Or your daughter bursting into your room and announcing her tummy ache. Decide who or what is a distraction to you. Family, probably not. Your friend who wants to call you after they binged “Squid Game” for the third time to talk about all the stuff they missed the first two times–distraction.

2. Set a time for your distractions. Your daughter’s tummy ache requires immediate attention. Talking about “Squid Game” can happen at any time. Set a time to do all the things that come to you when you’re writing. Make a list if you want.

3. Work in Pomodoro's. The Pomodoro technique is super popular for a reason. Pomodoro's are short time frames where you agree to work. If you work for that set time, then your reward is a break. Pomodoro's vary in length; some people like 20 minutes, some can do 30. You’ll find what works for you. When your work time is up, then you get a 5-10 minute break. And you can do whatever during your break time, including some of the distractions on your list.

4. Take a break. Sometimes, you just need a break. Take a walk. Call a friend. Listen to a podcast or audiobook.

5. Write about your distractions. You can do this in a couple of ways. One, you can freewrite about your distractions. Freewriting may uncover why you feel distracted. You can brainstorm some ways to handle these distractions. Another way is to write an article about your distractions. If your distraction is your dog, write about your dog. Write about what your dog has taught you about distractions or about life. Either of these ways may give you the momentum to actually write your assignment.

Bottom line: distractions aren’t always what you think they are. Sometimes our “distractions” are what we should really be focusing on.