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Can I get focus by turning off digital noise?

The main theme for my 2009 is completing my thesis and submitting my PhD. However, I am not happy with my progress on it, and needed to critically address my progress.

My first step was to review the project with my supervisor. We have decided the limits of the project, and a tentative priority list. We came up with some definite dates to submit chapter drafts, and an absolute date for him to have the whole thing. And most importantly, the boss has agreed that if I complete the work as agreed, he will sign it off as sufficient for a PhD.

In order to give myself the best chance, I have done a critical strengths and weakness review. My main strength is compiling scientific results and writing them up. My main weakness is distractions, as some of the other parts of my life (family, creative writing, blogging) are more interesting to me than my PhD. I have made a conscious pledge to submit my thesis on time, but my subconscious keeps finding other things to do.

Finding focus by turning down the noise

Reducing the noise and my susceptibility to is, it vital. Here are some strategies I am using. They seem to be helping so far, but this is definitely a work in progress.

1. Reduce task clutter

• I have trimmed the task fat from my task manager. I try to keep the active tasks viewable on one page.
• I move most tasks to my Someday folder - anything I don’t plan to work on in the next week.
• I select three tasks at time to work on. I can do the fun thing, but then I have to do the not-fun thing before I can choose something new. This has drastically improved my focus.
• I have changed from Omnifocus to Things. Less to rearrange. Less friction. Less procrastinaion.

2. Reduce Chatter clutter

• Turn off twitter notifications and growl alerts. This way I take control of checking the score.
• Turn off twitter through the day . This is my version of shutting off the internet (which I need for work). Check it once or twice a day.
• Use a dashboard widget (I like Chirp, which lets me still receive @replies and DMs) or Twitfire (for iPhone) to update my status without reading updates

3. Reduce link clutter

I spend a lot of time following links. I think it is the modern equivalent of the forward-to-everyone funny emails. But it is more destructive, as one link leads to another, and they are so interesting. Weblinks lead to the dark side. Particularly the ones that start with “youtube”.

• Highlight any url (in a tweet, mail, IM, RSS feed) and hit paste to Evernote in my menu bar. It is pasted as a new note in my Evernote inbox. I can check them when I next process my inbox.

4. Reduce document clutter

I have a lot of documents everywhere on my harddrive. I waste time looking for things, or reading things. They use up my focus, and feel like “unclosed loops” - what if there is something vital in my unprocessed documents?

• Create an inbox on my dock/desktop and drop every file there. This gets to empty at least at weekly review, but also at the end of each day.
• I have optimized my digital filing so I am happy I know where everything is, and that I can find it.
• My digital filing system also has an inbox, which I keep at zero. Nothing goes untagged (unfiled)

5. Focus on getting things read

I know I have things to read, but there are so many, I get overwhelmed.

• Create a “To Read” folder on my dock/desktop. It gets reviewed in my weekly review. Files that I have read go back to filing. The file count should never be more than five.

What about you? How do you turn down the volume to regain focus?