Stop Interrupting ME!

According to Dr. Donald E. Wetmore, a time management guru, the average person gets interrupted every 8 minutes, 7 times an hour, 50-60 times a day. The average interruption takes 5 minutes...4 hours of a work day. 80% of these interruptions are typically rated as having little to no value.

WHAT?? Does that sound like your day? From phone calls, emails, instant messages, to people just popping in your office, interruptions can zap time.  While we think about interruptions as an action done by someone to us, in reality we are in control of how many interruptions we get in a day and more important how they affect us. We must take back control in order to prevent interruptions. Here are some of my tips for regaining control.

Unplug -  When I started my career, a closed office door was a universal signal for "do not disturb" Today, the office door can be bypassed, with text messages, phone calls, emails, instant messages, push notifications on your smart phone... and the list goes on. However, an email can only interrupt you if you know that it is there. A text message can only steal time from your day if you know that you received one. While workers cite technology as being their #1 interruption, these type of interruptions are the easiest to control

• When you need to work for a prolonged period of time without interruption, turn off your phone and close your e-mail

• Control your notifications, don't let your notifications control you. Most emails don't require an immediate response, so turn off the notifications, or use them for a filtered group of people. Change your phone settings to turn off push notifications.

• Our technology has created a false sense of urgency - recognize that someone sent you an email because a topic is top of mind for them; not because they expect it to be top of mind for you!

• Use "out of office" or "not immediately available" alerts in your email. This way you send a message to someone that yes, I have received your email and I am not going to be responding right away.
  

Set Appointments with yourself and more importantly, put them on your calendar. I used to have an employee who would "pop" into my office when he saw that my calendar was open. He thought he was doing the courteous thing by checking my calendar before he came over. If there were no appointments, it was his assumption that I was free. To combat this, I started scheduling time with myself. I would put appointments on my calendar to write reviews, update loan policies, research, plan for training, etc. This way I knew the work would get done (what gets planned gets done) and I sent a message to people, via of my calendar, that I was unavailable. Empower Your Team - If you are a manager, you may find yourself being interrupted so that an employee can ask for the "ok" to do something. Sometimes there is a good business reason for them to bring you into the conversation; other times the situation may be pretty straight forward or mundane. They may be coming to you because they don't feel empowered or confident. Early in my career, I was a lending officer at the credit union. I had been trained by the Lending Manager who had a strong "don't mess this up" attitude. Due to her approach, I always felt like I needed her approval on more difficult loans. When she was out of the office for a prolonged period of time, I needed to run these loans past the CEO. I was so scared to make the wrong decision that I was interrupting him all day! Finally, one day he said, "Michele, don't come to me until you have the answer!" What? In an effort to control me from interrupting him, he worked hard to have me think through the loan myself, come to a decision, then if I really needed it, have him take a quick look. By the time the Lending Manager returned, I felt so much more confident and empowered that I was making all decisions on my own. Nix the Open Door Policy -  One of the challenges I used to help Branch Managers navigate was employees dropping in and taking advantage of the "open door policy." At the time, an "Open Door Policy" (drop in whenever you want, I am always here to listen) was a big management buzz word. We wanted a culture of open communication, where employees felt like they could share their ideas, opinions, and concerns. So, we sent the message that the door to your manager's office is always open. I was meeting with my manager, a senior leader in the company, and shared how this open door philosophy was exhausting and created interruptions all day. He looked at me pointedly and said, "Who said the door has to be open?" He proceeded to share his philosophy of a "screen door" - open enough to let people share their ideas, concerns and triumphs as it relates to the business, but still keeping out the idle chit-chat, or issues that really don't need to be brought to his desk. It was an important lesson on how to create an environment were opinions mattered and were heard, while lowering the number of unneeded interruptions. His "screen door" was taking a direct hit to the 80% of interruptions that were considered to be of no value. Work in a Different Space -  Most frequently, when I work in person with a client, it is in their office or home. This works well, as we have quick and easy access to documents, files, etc. However, it also means my client can easily get interrupted. So, when we have big projects or brainstorming sessions, I will recommend coming to my office, or meeting in an offsite location. Consider working in conference room, or empty office if you need to stay in your company's building. When I worked in the bank, I would sometimes go and work in another branch's spare office. Working from home can work well too, if you can keep yourself from being distracted by all the home stuff you have to do! Remember, if you are trying to unplug while you work, you are not grounded to a place with wifi - this may open up a whole new list of places to work! Address it Head On - No matter how much we send the signal to someone that we are busy, trying to work uninterrupted, inevitably we end up with that person who calls or stops by to say hi, or see if you caught last night's episode of the newest show. You may need to address this head on and politely. Recognize that the Chronic Interrupter is not always sensitive to subtle hints. You may need to be direct and ask them curb their chat for a more social time. Offer to meet them for lunch or cocktails. This way work time can be focused on work, but you can still catch up with this office friend.

Interruptions can literally take money out of pockets. We take longer to get things done and subsequently accomplish less. So take back control! I would love to hear how your curb interruptions! Feel free to leave your comments below!