Sometimes we think, "It will only take a few minutes and then I'll get back to what I was working on." The thing is, whenever we are pulled away from a task, it takes far longer to get back in the groove and up to the level of productivity we were enjoying than the actual amount of time we spent on that interruption.

On Friday, I spoke with an advisor client in California who made another small yet significant shift in how he is managing during this time of hightened stress and overwhelm. Instead of taking client calls as they come, he has set aside two call-back blocks of time in his schedule - one just before lunch and the other at the end of his work day.

He reaps several advantages by doing this. He can cut down dramatically on the number of interruptions he receives throughout the day. This single step in streamlining his daily workflow will add time for him to complete those Important/Not (Yet) Urgent projects and tasks. Clients will get to speak with him that same day and will know they are being well taken care of. They will also begin to learn not to expect to speak with him immediately every time they call. If that's your clients' expectation, it only means you've taught them well! And this provides his administrative assistant with a proactive way to respond to client calls. Instead of, "He's out of the office," (when perhaps he really isn't), he can say instead, "Tom will be returning calls today between 11:30 and 12:00 and again between 4:00 and 5:00. Which time would work best for you?" Instead of the message that he isn't available, the client gets the message that he is, indeed, available and when.

Some of the ways you can best support yourself are not just simple, they're easy!