3 Nudges to Reduce Interruptions

1.         Turn off unnecessary notifications

It is not only our colleagues that create interruptions – our technology does it as well. A notification from an e-mail can quickly catch our attention and before we know it, we have spent 10 minutes replying an e-mail that could have waited. Therefore, make sure any unnecessary notifications are turned off.

2. Signal that you are busy

The second nudge consists of letting colleagues know when you do not want to be disturbed. Use the ‘Status’ options in Skype to work for you.

3. Schedule time for small talk

Smalltalk is an important component of a collaboration strategy as much learning and optimisation of work happens when you connect with each other during the day. However, colleagues who seek to small talk do not necessarily think about how it affects the colleague they interrupt. A way to solve this problem is by scheduling short breaks for small talks. These breaks will create a specific time to look forward to for those who seek to small talk and at the same time limit unnecessary interruptions. This tactic is also related to ‘batching’ –

Added tip – Have OneNote or To-Do open

Sometimes it happens! The good idea pops up and we are captivated by an overwhelming desire to share the idea. Or, a question we would like an answer to occurs. In fear of forgetting the idea or question, we immediately seek to obtain a colleague’s attention. In this case, the notepad will be your best friend. Instead of interrupting a colleague, you can write down questions and ideas and save them for later. This will reduce the number of interruptions and help you getting your thoughts in writing instead of trying to remember them.