As you become more aware of the distractions and interruptions in your day, you’ll also become more aware of the amount of time that you are wasting on them. This will serve as motivation to continue trying to eliminate interruptions from your day. Here are some additional tips to help you control interruptions and get more productivity out of your work day:
• Before calling a meeting, determine if it is truly necessary. Can you handle it by email or a short conference call? Don’t take your time and the time of other people unless a meeting is truly the best way to achieve your goal.
• Before calling a meeting, be sure that you have a specific result in mind. If you don’t know why you are meeting, how wil you know if you accomplished what you needed to accomplish?
• Before attending a meeting, be sure that you understand exactly what the meeting is about. ‘To discuss the third quarter figures’ is not specific enough; what is the expected result? Then when you go to the meeting, you’ll be fully prepared to participate and move the group towards the result that is expected.
• Use ‘Do Not Disturb.’ If you have that feature on your phone system, use it. The feature allows you to direct calls to your voicemail rather than having the phone ring in your office. Then when it is convenient for you, you can respond. Don’t be afraid to use a sign on your door that says ‘do not disturb’ if you have a serious deadline that you have to concentrate on – sometimes a physical sign is what it will take for some people to get the message.
• Stand up to visitors. Not in the sense of defending yourself, but in the sense of defending your time. A great tactic for ending a conversation is to simply stand up from your desk. This signals to the other person that you have somewhere to be. If you have to, actually walk out of the office. Head to the bathroom, the break room, or even the stairwell for a moment before returning to your desk.
• Learn to just say no. Most of us don’t like to say no to others. We want to be seen as a team player and we want to be included in what the rest of the team is talking about or doing. But sometimes the best thing for you and your workload is to simply say no. You can do so graciously, of course, by giving the person another opportunity for whatever they are offering. If they invite you to lunch today, propose that you go on Friday. If they want your input on how they are progressing on their project, let them know that you would like to help them but you can’t at the moment – then schedule time in your week to help them when it’s convenient for you both.
