Distractions in your workplace destroy your productivity, regardless of where you actually work. But here’s the kicker: Some distractions don’t always register as distractions because they’re often minor, like a knock at the door or a conversation you can hear from two cubicles over. However, even when a distraction doesn’t feel like a distraction, it still kills your productivity. But one distraction in particular can absolutely ruin productivity. It isn’t as obvious as an unexpected phone call or a meeting that could have been an email. It’s a small, normal part of our everyday lives: the notification . We get notifications on our phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, and even our smartwatches. Notifications are everywhere, and we’re conditioned to accept them. Take email, for example. You’re likely in the habit of checking email periodically — or whenever you get a notification. It can feel natural to quickly check your email and then get back to what you were doing. Except that never happens. When an email, text, or other random notification distracts you, it completely diverts attention away from what you were doing. If it’s spam, you may delete the email. Or, if you need to respond, it might take a few minutes or more. You may spend anywhere between 20 seconds to 20 minutes on any given email. A Little Distraction
attempt to get back to what you were doing before checking your notifications.
A University of California, Irvine study found that it takes an average of 23 minutes to get back to your task after every distraction, not just
email. Over the course of a day, that adds up to a significant amount of wasted time.
How do you overcome this? Your best bet is to turn off notifications. Most devices let you customize your notifications so you can turn them off during working hours. Here’s another quick tip: Set aside time during the day to check emails, texts, and other messages. You will significantly reduce the amount of time spent trying to refocus on the important tasks at hand.
However, this isn’t where time is lost. If you’re responding to a customer email, for instance, that is part of your productivity. The time is lost when you
Red Flags That Attract the Eye of the IRS How to Avoid Tax Audits
With the tax due date returning to April 15 this
Often, the numbers could be the result of a mistake, or maybe some expenses or income were accidentally not reported. To avoid an audit, it’s best to double- and triple-check income and expense numbers before filing these tax forms. CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS Our tax system awards charitable contributions with tax deductions. While this has proven to be a powerful incentive for some people, it’s also a source of temptation. To counter this, the IRS uses an automated computer program that analyzes nearly every return to identify figures that seem high compared to an individual’s income. The IRS will issue an audit if a return exceeds the IRS discriminant function (DIF) score that the program assigns to each return. CLAIMING DEPENDENTS It’s not uncommon for families to accidentally claim the same dependent, especially if they have been recently divorced or split custody alternating years on their tax forms. Unfortunately, even if it is an accident, it will trigger an audit. Before making the final step in your taxes, make sure it is your year to claim your dependents. One of the best ways to avoid mistakes on your tax forms is to speak with a professional tax resolution specialist. Call 877-829-7847 to schedule an appointment with Tim Thompson today.
year, everyone is keen to get their taxes completed on time. However, nothing is worse than feeling relieved your taxes have been submitted, only to receive a letter in the mail from the IRS alerting you that your taxes are about to be audited. To help you avoid the eye of the IRS, here are a few red flags they look for. TAX FORMS AND REPORTED INCOME
The IRS will compare all income information that you report. This includes any persons who submit a W-2, 1099, or both forms. If any of the information doesn’t add up, the IRS will want to know why and conduct an audit. BUSINESS INCOME AND EXPENSE Similarly, the IRS will look into any expenses that don’t make sense in a business. In some cases, they are looking for people who are trying to take business expense deductions for what is really a hobby, not a business.
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