Michael Cage, who earns most of his income through writing, takes drastic measures to organize his time:
I just want better strategies for focus. So, I bought an iBook. It does not have E-mail set up and never will. When it’s time to work on important projects, I carry it into another office…. As for my main, office computer, I’ve made a life-changing shift there, as well. I only check E-mail once per day, at the end of the day….
I’ve noticed many people are happier with the illusion of progress than they are with progress itself. You can spend an entire day “appearing†productive by banging out E-mail after E-mail, writing memos, and barely taking a break. But at the end of the day you are where you started. Low-value, low-return busy work took up your day, and you are confronted with the fact that high-impact projects aren’t done. Or much/any closer to being done.
I used to do this more in my previous job, unplugging the laptop and moving to a lounge-like spot in the office. Sadly my current job lacks loungeness, and a laptop.