The office is not always the best place to actually do work. After all, not only do we have a million tasks to accomplish each day, but we've also got to deal with coworkers dropping by, office gossip, parties, meetings, and more.

So what do you do to stay focused? Set up camp at the local Starbucks? Put up a sign that says "Keep out or else"? Clayton Shold at Salesopedia recently ran a great story in his blog about shutting out distractions in the workplace - keep his insight in mind the next time you're feeling overwhelmed and unable to get any work done in the office!

"Blinders are used on horses to allow them to only look forward and avoid distractions to the side. Shutters are used to keep the light out or to prevent people from looking in a window. Both have specific and meaningful purposes."

"Last week I was discussing the challenges of working in a multi-tasking environment with someone from the retail sales sector," says Shold. "She was relating the story of a co-worker who always seemed to be distracted, to the point that she was not getting her day-to-day tasks completed as required. Her advice to her co-worker was to "keep the blinders and shutters on."

"I asked her what she meant and she went on to say that part of the solution was the blinders, staying focused on what needed to be done. The shutters referred to eliminating the nonsense going on that was distracting the co-worker from being productive. She explained this included ignoring the rumor mill, the office grapevine, and the negative discussions that can sometime happen around the water cooler."

For those of you looking for advice or wishing to pass some along to others, if it involves staying focused and closing out all the negative vibes around you, then "keep the blinders and shutters on!"

Clayton Shold writes the Salesopedia blog, discussing sales, sales management, and life in general. Learn more at http://blog.salesopedia.com