Once you ‘ve written them down, all you have to do is eliminate them.”

Excuse me as I pick myself up of the floor from laughing.  You see, my top 3 distractions are my 8 year old, my 4 year old, and my 20 month old!  Can’t really see myself “eliminating” them!

Now, of course what the guru meant was if it’s e-mail, close your e-mail program, turn off your IM’s, and shut down Twitter.  But it also goes to show how different men and women, (and even women and moms) work from home.  For the work at home mom, you can’t simply “eliminate” your top distractions, actually, what you have to do is distract your distractions!

Here are a few tips for distracting your distractions if you’re a work at home mom.

Play Dough

I only bring out the playdough when I am trying to work. And I only bring it out in the kitchen.  Sure I end up with an extra hour of cleanup getting those little playdough pieces off the floor, but if I get anything accomplished in the hour it distracts them, I still consider myself ahead.

Bubble Machines

In my experience, a bubble machine is good for about 20 minutes of uninteruped work time.  These are those little machines that you put in a battery or plug it in, add a little bubble solution, and tada – it blows the bubbles for you!  They are best used outside, however, if I use it inside, it tends to give my floor a bit of a between the mopping cleaning! (Now if only I could find a non-toxic floor cleaner that makes good bubbles, then I could really take advantage of this little invention.)

Computer Games

Although it only really distracts one child at a time, two at the most, I try to pick up educational computer games on a regular basis.  You can get many for less than $20, some even less than $10.  That way I feel a little better about letting my kids spend time on the computer.  Depending on the game and the child, I can get anywhere from 20 minutes to almost an hour of uninterrupted work time.  Some of my (and my kids) favorites are in the cute little carousel below.

Nap Time

It’s free, it’s easy (if practices regularly) and it’s usually worth at least an hour!  Yes, the afternoon nap.  When my kids are too old for the nap (like my 8 year old), I simply call it a “quiet time.”  Set the timer, and set them on their beds with several books and get to work.  The hour will be up before you know it.

Television

Well, I hate to admit it, but yes, I use the television to distract my kids.  I have a television in the room with my computer, so I usually have them watch in there so that I can monitor what they watch. I’ve found that even on “safe” channels, there are often commercials or things that I may not approve of, so just to be sure, I make my kids watch cable in the same room with me.  We also have a stash of DVD’s that I’ve already approved of, and those they can watch in a different room.  I’ve also discovered that the public library is a good source for DVD’s to help change things up without costing me a fortune.

Last Resort

As a last resort, when I can’t seem to distract my kids, I simply take a break and spend some extra time with them playing a game or reading a book or taking a walk.  Sometimes all kids want is your attention, and there is no substitute for that.  And that is what makes working from home so great!

Maybe it’s because you’ve lost your passion.
Maybe you’re overwhelmed.
Maybe you just don’t have enough time.
Maybe you’re disorganized.
Maybe your staff is inefficient (or maybe you are)
Maybe you don’t know how to grow your business to the next level (or maybe you don’t want to do what it takes)

Regardless of the reason why your business isn’t growing, it’s time to stop making excuses and do something about it.  You worked REALLY hard to get to this point. You spent time, money, and a lot of energy to build your business.  Certainly you’re not going to let it fritter away.

Here’s how to stop making excuses for why your business isn’t growing:

Step 1.  Figure out why it isn’t growing.  Perhaps your product line is stagnant.  Perhaps you’re only reaching 10% of your eligible prospects.  Perhaps your sales page isn’t converting or your advertising campaign isn’t reaching the right people.  The first step to figuring out how to stop making excuses is to honestly examine why it isn’t growing.  The reason may reside completely in you – perhaps business got too big too fast and you don’t have time to catch up let alone build your business.  This leads us to the next step.

Step 2.  Decide if you want your business to grow and if so, by how much?  In short, if you do want your business to grow then set goals.  If you’re making $50,000 in sales then maybe you want to set a goal of $75,000 in sales.  If you have a customer base of 100 regular customers maybe you want to double it.  Set reasonable and attainable goals.

Step 3.  Analyze what is working to help you attain your goals and what isn’t working.  For example, if you want to attain $75,000 in sales but you’re spending 50% of your time on administrative duties then your time isn’t being well spent.  Remember the 80/20 rule – that means you need to spend 80% of your time on the things that bring you money.  Administrative duties are necessary, but they don’t bring in money.  Prospecting for new customers and making sales, that makes money.  Make sure you are spending about 80% of your time on income producing activities.

Step 4.  Make a plan to eliminate what isn’t working.  Using the example in step 3 if you’re spending 50% of your time on administrative tasks then outsourcing some or all of those tasks will free up a significant amount of time. Are you easily distracted by your kids?  Try hiring a babysitter for a few hours a week so you can concentrate more effectively.  The time you free up could be just the time you need to reach your new goals.

Step 5.  This is the best part.  Create a reward for attaining your goals.  Part of the motivation to attain a goal, beyond self fulfillment and feeling very proud, is giving yourself a little pat on the back.  Some may pat themselves on the back with a two week vacation to Hawaii, others prefer a new pair of shoes or a week off to go camping with their children.  Whatever the reward, including it in your plan may be the extra motivation you need to get beyond excuses and into action.
Entrepreneurs tend to be goal oriented, action oriented people.  However sometimes life gets a bit out of control and instead of action, excuses fill the void.  To regain your entrepreneur spirit, eliminate the roadblocks and hurdles and set new goals.  It’s the best way to stop making excuses about why your business isn’t growing and remember why you got into business in the first place.

There are several ways to help keep this from happening. Here are a few to try:

• Set up your office in a separate room. If at all possible, set up your home office in it’s own room. That way when you leave the room, you can leave your work behind. If space doesn’t allow, try to use a closet (yes, I said closet – click here to view a great closet office.)

• Set Office Hours. Yes, flexibility is great, but so is routine. Set yourself some office hours, or even some time guidelines to prevent yourself from overworking (or underworking) your business.

• Set Family Hours and stick to them. In addition to setting office hours, set some family hours where you will NOT do business. Make sure your family knows when they are, and they will be sure to hold you accountable to them.

While these ideas may seem simple, if you implement them, you will find your working from home experience to much more enjoyable for you and your family!