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Types of interruptions at work
How to minimize interruptions at work
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Types of interruptions at work
How to minimize interruptions at work
How many times has this happened to you?
You’re working on a document in a perfect state of flow until your phone rings with an important message. You check and reply quickly.
Then, since you’re there, you decide it’s worth checking your email, too. And right after that, you can squeeze in a quick look at your socials.
After all, you’ve been productive this morning! A short break is surely in order.
Next thing you know, 15 minutes have passed. And by the time you return to your document, you don’t remember your last train of thought. It takes another 15 minutes for you to re-orient yourself and pay full attention. Add it all up, and that little message just costs you half an hour!
These kinds of distractions are time-consuming and costly. And, whether you’re working from home because of the pandemic or getting re-acquainted with an office workspace, more things than ever can pull you off track.
It’s up to you to stay on task. And part of that involves setting boundaries between yourself and potential detractors. Here are our tips on how to avoid interruptions at work.
Avoiding interruptions is difficult but not impossible — and not always necessary. A simple way to improve your personal productivity and well-being is to distinguish between valid and invalid interruptions. Here’s a description of both, with examples of interruptions at work.
Valid interruptions are simply part of your job or otherwise unavoidable. You have no choice but to deal with them right away. Here are some examples:
Invalid interruptions are distractions you don’t have to deal with right away or at all. For example:
By now, you wonder how to stop interruptions at work. In some ways, you can’t. Not completely. And you can’t avoid interrupting people. If you need your boss's attention, it’s hard to find the right time to send that weighty Slack message. But you can minimize them.
Here’s what to do.
Try keeping an Interrupters Log. This will give you a clearer picture of the interruptions you experience daily. You can then look for patterns and decide on a course of action to deal with these distractions.
When you record an interruption, include these elements:
These details will provide valuable insight into when you should prepare for questions or set firmer boundaries about when people can contact you.
If people know they’ll have access to you soon, they can hang onto their questions, comments, and concerns until you meet. This is especially helpful if you have a handful of people you work with closely. Schedule a regular weekly meeting, ask them to keep a list of things they want to discuss, and you can do the same. Then you can address everything in a single focused session.
Your Interrupters Log might have many valid interruptions. If that’s the case, make sure to account for them in your schedule.
If you regularly have a post-lunch rush of phone calls from your sales team, don’t schedule important work during this time. This will help prevent you from being overwhelmed if you’re on a deadline but can’t say no to your team.
And if your company is remote and spans time zones, figure out how to use those to your advantage. Maybe you can do your deep work in the morning before your west coast team members are awake.
Whether you use Slack, Teams, or Google, your organization’s software likely has a “status” function. Use it to let people know when you don’t want to be interrupted. Just change it back to “active” once your interruption-free block is over.
Alternatively, you can use an emailed automatic reply for the same purpose. Leave a short message saying when you’ll get around to answering them.
If you’re too busy, you can refuse a request or a task. Or, at the very least, ask for an extended deadline.
It’s tempting to say “yes” to everything when you want to be a team player. But, if you develop symptoms of burnout, you only hurt your team and yourself in the long run. Learn how to say “No.”
You already know that communication is key. Let people know what you’re working on and how it fits your team’s goals. This will help you manage expectations of what you can and can’t help with that day.
You can do this through daily conference room meetings, email chains, or chat messages in the morning. If others do the same, you’ll work better knowing what each is doing.
Take some time to make your devices work for you. Your smartphone likely has a “do not disturb” function that can silence most notifications. If you’re worried about missing important calls, like your kids’ school, add a filter to let certain calls through.
When someone reaches out for help, the issue might feel urgent at the time. But chances are, it’s not a crisis. Take a deep breath, respond calmly, and avoid rushing to conclusions. A small delay can help you both assess the situation correctly.
Some distractions are unavoidable. But, when they do happen, make sure to set boundaries for the conversation:
How many of these interruptions can you avoid if you change some of your own behavior? Perhaps you could improve your delegation skills, foster resilience among your team, or develop your leadership skills.
This kind of self-awareness can help you avoid issues and prevent frustration.
If you’ve tried these tips and still feel you can’t handle interruptions, try working with BetterUp. Our coaches can help you assess your situation and develop a plan for reducing distractions at work.
Distractions are a normal part of work, so don’t beat yourself up if it happens to you. The trick is to bounce back quickly so you don’t lose much time.
Here’s how you can minimize lost time due to an interruption.
Interruptions can make you feel like you’re doing less than you actually are. But a to-do list with fewer Xs than you’d hoped it to have is still valuable. You made progress, and that sets future you up for success. Focus on what you accomplished — not what you couldn’t.
Helping your team is important work, and you should be proud of that. But now, your goal should be to help your colleagues thrive as much as they can without you.
These tips on how to avoid interruptions at work are a good place to start. Setting clear boundaries will help them respect your time and solve problems independently.
And, if you ever feel overwhelmed, BetterUp is here to support you. With our coaches, you can discuss your work challenges and find solutions. Whether you want to minimize interruptions or improve your time management skills, we can get there together.
Content Marketing Manager, ACC
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