In the workplace we are surrounded by distractions.

The irritating ramblings of a nearby co-worker, the temptation of the 'quick check' on  social networking sites, the many and varied other things spinning around in your head.

It's Monday morning, and we are in transition- from the slow meanderings (or heady indulgences) of the weekend, back to the deliverables of the work week.

First things first. Planning ahead is the very best way to bring your focus back to where it needs to be. Simply make a list of what needs to be done, and give them a priority. (When allocating tasks within the RWorks system we use critical, high, medium and low priority statuses). Start with the tasks that have critical priority, focus only on those tasks until they are finished, and ignore everything else.

Monday's can be tough, so let's keep it simple.

Other articles by the same author:

Too Much Information, Not Enough Time?

How to Maintain Productivity despite Workplace Distractions

 This article was written by Valerie Redmond, co-founder of RWorks, which is an online task and project management system.

Valerie can be followed on twitter @rworker, or emailed at vredmond@rworks.com. You can also 'like' RWorks in the 'follow us' section of rworks.com