Being your own boss can also mean policing your productivity. For every hour the average American spends online, 16 minutes is spent on social media sites, nine minutes is spent on entertainment sites and five minutes is spent shopping, according to a 2013 survey by Experian Marketing Services. “Facebook and Twitter are almost always more fun than working,” says David Ryan Polgar, co-founder of overplugged.org, a website about technology’s effect on life, and author of Wisdom in the Age of Twitter (Amazon Digital Services, 2012). He likens digital media consumption to dieting and says many of us are mentally obese, consuming an overwhelming amount of information every day. “Will power isn’t enough,” he says. “Entrepreneurs should take advantage of the available tools that can help you resist temptation.” Time-tracking and distraction-blocking software can help small-business owners boost efficiency and gain control of their day.

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