Interruption is always a hot topic in productivity. Brian Donnelly at The Herald nails down some facts on office interruptions. A study shows modern day staff work for just 11 minutes before they get interrupted by emails, phone or colleague. The study also shows it needs on average of 25 minutes to return to the original task – or back to the flow. Technologies make us keep in touch with people easily, with that that is a consequences that we allow them to interrupt us easily as well:
… It has reached such an extent that workers are becoming locked in what was described as a mire of multi-tasking, and one expert said there had been a tenfold rise in the number of people suffering from what he called work-induced attention-deficit disorder.
The two hours of lost productivity included not only unimportant interruptions and distractions, but also the recovery time associated with getting back on track….
Good article. Sometimes we are just willing to get interrupted by unexpected calls and emails. We have to get use to disabling or screening phone/emails when we need concentration.
Why modern offices only let you work for 11 minutes – [The Herald]
