Today we are simply overwhelmed by digital data, which make it very difficult to make our average workday a productive and focused one. Just consider how much time we spend daily on our email inbox, trying to read and answer to everybody and file every message. According to the digital explorer Alexandra Samuel (Work smarter with social media), having a clean Inbox is not only impossible, it is also a waste of time, and she provides five useful tips to resist the constant assault of online distraction:

  1. Stop trying to keep up. Instead of keeping up, make your goal keeping focused by being extremely clear about your priorities, both short and long term.
  2. Your most important online work happens offline. Be clear about what actually matters to you, before opening your computer.
  3. Match your digital life to your real-life priorities. Set email filters and, most importantly, make sure you’re setting up shortcuts and prioritizing what’s most relevant.
  4. Get your news all in one day. Use a newsreader which aggregate articles and create a news feed that lets you read stories and get information across the Internet all in one place.
  5. Don’t reflexively fill idle time with screen time. if you have less than five minutes of free time, resist the urge to fill it with smartphone time.

Read the full article on Fastcompany

image source: Pixabay (CC0)