Distraction is the enemy of successful freelancing, but it’s something that happens to many freelancers. It’s all very well to be able to work in your pajamas, set your own schedule and create great designs and content on the move (not to mention keeping up with social media), but those advantages can also be major distractions. How do you create a laser-like focus and get the job done every time? Here are some tips and tools for being a focused freelancer.

Defining allocated tasks

One of the best techniques is situating specific tasks one at a time. For example, once you wake up and get online you may begin with a typical routine. Check e-mail, social networks, etc. It’s best to keep these types of activities set aside for early morning/later evening and break periods.

Taking a 15 minute break every hour or two is necessary. But don’t let yourself get distracted by e-mail and websites every 20 or 30 minutes. You’ll never get any real work done and feel quite unaccomplished when evening comes around.

Use time saving tools

Some apps help you block out online distractions by eliminating your access to certain sites for a specified period of time each day. Rescue Time and Freedom are two such apps. If your main distractions are online, these apps may help you.

Schedule your time

This is an important one, and one that is sorely overlooked by many freelancers. Set your schedule every day. Make sure to schedule breaks. You will find that not scheduling breaks it gets harder and harder to stay focused and on track. Don’t overwork yourself. Yes you’re amount of income is now in your hands, but don’t work yourself 7 days a week . Doing this will cause you to become burned out, and being burned out makes it near impossible to be focused and on task.

You would be surprised how important it becomes to stick to this schedule. Just think of it this way, every time you stray from this schedule you’re costing yourself money.

Avoid too much multi-tasking

We are so proud of our ability to multi-task. But sometimes multi-tasking can backfire and become over scheduling. If you’re a serial multi-tasker, watch out for over scheduling. Learn to say “no” to those tasks that don’t improve your bottom line.

Keep your cell at  silent

Don’t let your friends or contacts distract you while working. Turn off your phone for a while, or at least mute it. Focus is the master key for the success, don’t let others take it away from you. Make your important phone calls before you start working, so you won’t have to think about them later on.