Need to get more done in a day? Remove your distractions.
We live in a completely interrupt driven world and its honestly tough to get out of it. Our mobile phones chirp, beep, vibrate and ring for all types of things including emails, phone calls, text messages, alarms and other events that may require attention. Our email applications pop-up reminders for appointments or new emails and I personally have 4 different Instant Messaging accounts routed through one tool, needless to say it is constantly going off. Much of what I’ve listed is just the tip of the iceberg – I think you get my point.
As I stated above, all of these interruptions generally lead to something that “may require attention,” but stop and think about this for a moment. How often do you get a text message, email or even a phone call that requires immediate (within the next 30 minutes) action? When I start to think about this I can honestly say that 99% of these could be left for at least 30 minutes and in many cases several hours if not days before requiring action.
The goal is to make yourself as efficient as possible while at work in order to minimize the time you are at work and maximize your output. In order to do this, you must get rid of the hundreds of interruptions you encounter on a daily basis. Here is a simple plan to get you started:
1. Break your work into 30 minute chunks. In general it is very difficult for most people to truly focus 100% on something for longer than this (thanks to our interrupt driven behaviors).
2. Only do the task that you have assigned for that 30 minutes for 20 – 25 minutes.
3. Turn off all interrupt driven mechanisms during this time (email, IM, phone, desk-phone, etc).
4. Use the remaining 5-10 minutes per 30 minutes to catch up on “what you missed” and add any new to-do’s as 30 minute chunks to the end of your day (or prioritize as needed).
With the plan above, the absolute longest that an email, text message or instant message will have been left sitting is 20 – 25 minutes. To most people doing something like this seems ridiculous or impossible. I know there are the rare cases where this type of plan will not work, but I am confident that this model will work for most positions and remember, this can apply to activities outside of work as well (doing your taxes, budgeting, cleaning, etc).
Does anyone do anything like this already? What are your tips? Does anyone see flaws in my plan?
Thank you for this very worthy distraction, it has just increased my productivity!
Sounds like a good start. I’ve read something recently that, to an extent, counters some conventional wisdom here: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/technology/workplace-web-bludging-good-for-productivity-20090402-9ktm.html
Kind of tangential, but I thought it was provocative, to say the least. I know many workplaces that proxy filter the heck out of their internet, ostensibly for productivity gains.
Unfortunately, some of us are paid, at least in part, to answer that phone and be interrupted. So, let me say this: if you are so lucky as to be able to enjoy a bit of focused peace and quiet, count yourself lucky.
I’m immersed in interruptions: from walk-ins, to phone calls, to emails, and its all part of the job! To help manage, I write to-do lists, constantly. Wherever there is a repetitive task I know I’ll end up performing again, I make checklists, to make sure I can stop and start as much as needed, and never lose my place. Checklists literally save lives. Pilots depend upon them, and if its good enough for them, it’ll work for me!