I know I have and when thinking back over the day’s events, I often feel confused about where all the time was spent.

As it turns out, this is not an uncommon occurrence for many business owners, especially those of us who are involved in the home business setting.

Several days ago, I received an email from Steve Little informing me of recent updates to his Perfect Biz Finder video blog. After visiting the blog,  I noticed a post on how to overcome the four top success saboteurs.

During the video, Steve identified four common practices or conditions that many of us incorporate into our daily routine that are not as productive as they should be. Many of us feel that at least one of these practices is actually a very good thing though he argues it deprives us of productivity.

Included in this list of productivity killers is:

1. Multitasking – working on multiple projects or tasks simultaneously;
2. Distractions and Interruptions – co-workers stopping to chat, kids coming by to show their new creation, EMAIL, TWITTER;
3. Friction (or frictional resistance as I like to think of it) – poorly operating equipment or cluttered workspace (not that I know of anyplace like that); and
4. Mind Chatter – those flash thoughts that often lead to day-dreams and tangents.

Panning back over the list a three of these practices/conditions (distractions, friction and mind chatter) make perfect sense but does multitasking?

At first glance, it would seem being able to juggle multiple tasks and projects would enable accomplishing significantly more outcome than limiting and focusing our efforts on one task or project.

Reflecting over several recent projects and comparing those already completed to those still ongoing, it becomes painfully obvious … focusing and completing projects yield far greater results (therefore much greater productivity).

Why … well beyond the obvious (there is an end result) the product of those efforts are already contributing to the desired outcome for those tasks and out ultimate goal for being in business.

When discussing the distractions and interruptions, the obvious intrusions (people stopping by to chat, telephone calls, deliveries etc.) were mentioned but a couple most of us might not think of: email and Twitter were also included.

According to Little, any of these distractions typically involve between 30 and 40 minutes of lost (or at least misdirected) time per event.

I don’t know about you, but mind chatter is a rather frequent occurrence within the grey-matter between my ears (ok, ok along with email, Twitter and multi-tasking!).  This can definitely be a detraction from productivity if it leads you off to day-dream land!

But let’s not leave a list of problems since if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem ….

Here are the suggestions (with some additional thoughts of mine) Steve Little provided during the video:

1. Develop an approach providing a clear focus regarding the key tasks at hand meant to propel you toward your goal.  This is a time period to focus on the task at hand and not get distracted (though I do jot down a line on a notepad about interesting ideas to flush out later). Little also advises not using task lists as the main time focusing tool (since they are open-ended and essentially non-committing).  His suggestion is to use a calendar and block out at least two hours per task.  If a given task won’t take two hours, couple with other similar tasks (might be things like interacting on social networking sites).  I also believe in blocking enough time to complete the task if possible (often meaning more than two hours).  Another thing I like to plan into each period is an extra 20 to 30 minutes of wind-down time and give a chance to flush out any thoughts recorded on the notepad during content preparation.
2. Relax for 15 to 30 minutes after each block of time is completed by taking a real break from your workspace (so it does not mean check email or Twitter!).  You’ll end up being refreshed and ready for the next project task.
3. Establish routines and be responsible with your time.  Always remember that you are your most important asset and squandering time on ineffective activities lowers your value.
4. Rest, renew and recover. Take two days each week away from the business focusing on the truly important aspects of life: our freedom from the 9-5 – 7 day work week grind and spend time with those most important to us (family and friends).

It’s almost common place to expect to see references to Twitter, Facebook and MySpace on cable and national network newscasts.  I suppose it was  just a matter of time to hear references to the major social networking sites on the local news program.  It was also no big shock to hear both the CNN pundits and George Stephanopoulos of ABC News request a follow on Twitter and Facebook during their Sunday morning talk shows.

Shortly thereafter, however, I changed the channel to the local (Kansas City) news channel (KCTV 5) to catch up on the local information and weather.  As luck would have it, I changed channels just as a special feature segment started.

The topic: Low-cost Marketing Techniques for the Small Business Owner.  During the segment, the reporter was interviewing Mr. Jerry Smith with the Marketing Action Club located in the KC Metro area.

Mr. Smith was quick to point out that during these tough economic times, even small businesses need to keep a substantial marketing effort alive.  Failure to do so could result in the customer-base losing contact and confidence in their businesses’ viability.

He specifically pointed out five different low or no-cost methods to maintain a reasonable marketing effort to keep your message in front of your target audience.  To my surprise (only because of where it was mentioned) these included:

1. Article marketing using sites such as Ezine Articles;
2. Social networking presence on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn;
3. Blogging;
4. Email marketing campaigns; and
5. Local networking clubs.

Even though I interact with numerous references to the first four tools online each day, it brought a smile to my face to both see and hear it on a live local TV news cast. I commend Jerry Smith and his Marketing Action Club for a great set of basic tools and insightful message.

All of these tools are indeed low or no cost options to assist anyone (small store-front business, network marketing business or home business) get there message out to their target audience and help build a web marketing presence.

Always remember, however, to use the proper approach and be sure to provide information that helps the prospect or customer find a solution to their problem and just don’t “pitch your product or service”.

As the popularity of Twitter continues to grow, the number of supporting software applications do as well.

Following is a list of Twitter applications that I either use or are on my “To Check Out” list based on the recommendations of my “Tweeple”.

Twitter Applications You May Want To Check Out:

Twhirl - Desktop client allowing you to perform normal functions (posts, RT, DM, etc.) with followers.

Tweet Later – This one application contains several Twitter productivity tools.  You can track keywords, track replies, schedule tweets, send welcome direct messages, and much more.

Ping FM - Post Tweets and Status Updates (with shortened URLs) to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and more than 25 additional social networking sites

Twitter Toolbar - You can use the toolbar to access online Twitter tools, check your Twitter stats, post your updates and more.  Versions are available for both Firefox and Internet Explorer.

Twitoria - This app lets you find out which of your followers has not been actively tweeting.  Easily sort through your network of followers and purge the inactive users.

Blip FM - DJ your own musical favorites and “Tweet” them out to all your “Tweeple”!

Digsby – Keep track of everything your followers are doing at all times.  The Digsby box display gives you a real time view into your Twitter account right from your browser.

Bubble Tweet - This unique application lets you post a short video message that pops up on your Twitter profile in a bubble shaped player.  You can personally introduce yourself and/or your business to anyone who visits your profile.

Twitter Gallery - A collection of free background themes for your Twitter account.  You can use the one click installation or manually install them yourself.  Lots of nice designs and colors to choose from.

Twit This - Allow visitors to your blog or website to easily post Twitter messages about you or your business.  Post the TwitThis button to your website or blog pages with the instructions and coding provided on their site.

TwitterFox – This app lets you post Twitter updates without visiting the Twitter site each time.  A small icon is added to the bottom of your Firefox status bar.  The icon opens to reveal your friend’s most current updates.  You can add your updates from that dialog box.

Future Tweets -  Allows you to schedule your tweet ahead of time for a specific date and time.  You can even schedule reoccuring tweets to post daily, monthly, even yearly.

TwitPic – This app lets you share your favorite pictures on Twitter.

TwitterHawk – This marketing app helps you connect with consumers in your area and related to the keywords you choose.

Tweetburner – Lets you shorten URLs and track the clicks your tweets accumulate.

Tweetdeck - Displays your Twitter friends and messages in a unique columned user interface. Allows you to group people together and search across the “Twittersphere”.

Twitter Safe – This free service will restore your network of followers in the event that your list is compromised.

Twimailer – Gives you more more extensive email notifications when your account obtains new followers.  Instead of the generic Twitter email notification; the email contains the followers location, followers stats and their most recent tweets.  At the bottom of the email, you can choose to follow the individual without even visiting Twitter.

I hope you find them useful!