Saturday link: 20 strategies to defeat the urge to do useless tasks

It’s so easy to get distracted by busy work. When I’m waiting on a particular email, I find myself jumping over to look every time a couple of new messages arrive. It’s counterproductive. So I’m working on it.

Over at Zen Habits, there’s a post about defeating that urge to do useless tasks. Leo lists 20 ways to help you fight that tendency. Take a look at the entire list for some great tips.

Here are some of my favorites:

Know what’s important
He suggests marking down your top three priorities for the day. Hmm, where have I heard that before? (Yes, I said five, but it’s still listing your top tasks.)

Be accountable
It definitely helps if you have a friend who can hold you accountable.

Reward yourself
It’s important to give yourself a pat on the back for doing what you set out to do.