Distractions are looming around every corner of the internet. Rather than succumb to the tempting quick Google search or blog refresh, writer Dan Koeppel suggests sticking the diversion in a Tangents Log and getting on with work.

I'm a writer who has constantly struggled with procrastination and distraction. I tend to go off on tangents, and lose many hours on those journeys. My routine is to keep a hand-written "Tangents Log." Whenever I feel the urge to diverge from my current work, I write the tangent down instead of following it immediately. At the end of the day, or the week, I review the list. Some of the items are really silly, and I'm glad I never spent the time. But the big bonus is that a lot of those tangents turn out to be very useful—they're ideas I can work into my current project, or even better, future ideas that I can use (and sell!) later. The result? My tangents have been triaged—the useless ones are gone, the productive ones are identified, and my daily productivity is saved.


It's a simple idea, but it's also a perfect solution to handling the ubiquitous distractions in the modern workplace. Like the idea? Maybe you'd also like Dan's completely unrelated book: Banana: The Fate of the Fruit that Changed the World. Thanks Dan!