Organize Your Work Schedule with an Interruption-Free Hour
With many people working from home, it is important to have time when you’re not interrupted. Make sure to have a sign or signal that indicates you are unavailable.
Many people realize that multitasking is not the best way to get work completed. However, they experience many small interruptions in their day, e-mail, texting and phone calls that take away from concentrating on a project.
These small tasks, added together, use up your work day.
“Drive by” conversations, when colleagues stop by your desk, stop you in the hall or a family member bursts into your office and gives you information also take time away from completing important tasks. As well the information may be forgotten or lost.
Being interrupted by colleagues stopping to chat can cost you a lot of valuable time.
Some offices have designated a specific time of the day for working on projects. It is an interruption-free time to concentrate on work during which employees can’t send or answer emails, texts, phone calls, attend meetings, etc. Each office is different so the designated time may be office-wide or scheduled into each person’s work day, week, or month individually. It is important that this time and format are respected by your colleagues, family and supported by management. You may be surprised how much you can get done in one hour without interruptions and your full concentration on one task at a time.
How do you plan on scheduling interruption free time? Let me know in the comments.
ulie Stobbe is a Trained Professional Organizer and Lifestyle Organizing Coach who brings happiness to homes and organization to offices, virtually using Zoom. She has been working with clients since 2006 to provide customized organizing solutions to suit their individual needs and situation. She uses her love of teaching to reduce clutter, in your home, office, mind and time. She guides and supports you to be accountable for your time, to complete projects and reach your goals. If you’re in a difficult transition Julie can coach you to break-free of emotional clutter constraining you from living life on your terms. Online courses are available to help instruct, coach and support your organizing projects. Get started by downloading Tips for Reorganizing 9 Rooms.
Contact her at julie@mindoverclutter.ca
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I don’t want any interruptions when I’m working. I’m easily irritated.
In my first office job, I used to like going in 30-60 minutes before the office actually opened in order to achieve that interruption-free time. Unfortunately, I had a co-worker who also started early, and she was a chatterbox, so it wasn’t always as productive as I’d hoped!
That has happened to me too. I think that is why it needs to be a policy so someone can say to a coworker please wait for an hour and have some way to show that they are unavailable right now. If there is a system in place then people wont feel ignored when you don’t respond to them.
I have found that turning off all notifications helps to eliminate interruptions…or leaving your phone in a different room for a specific time that you are working on a project! It is almost as if we expect to be interrupted rather than setting the stage so we won’t be interrupted.
Turning off technology is a great way to decrease interruptions. At times I will not answer the door either if I feel it will cause too much of my time to be used up on that day.
I think this is a wonderful idea. I imagine most employees would love if their office would instigate “quiet hours.” If the company would require that of everyone, it would be easier for each individual to use… no need to explain why you are “off limits” for the next hour.
Even though I work from home, I will do the “quiet hour” where I don’t allow technology to interfere with the work I have planned. I think many managers manage time around meetings fitting in whatever they can between meetings. That impacts the rest of the staff and how they are able to manage their time.