Distracted? Learn how to (re)focus

BUSINESS digest Distracted? Learn how to (re)focus 1 Distraction : your company's number one enemy You are interrupted at work on average every three minutes 1/3 3 min You lose almost a third of your work day Every year, distractions in the workplace cost American companies $1 trillion in lost productivity to recovering from these interruptions You switch screens and consult your emails M on average 37 times an hour 区区 of workers devote more 56% than two hours per day to managing their email flows. of workers say they check their messages 65% once an hour, but in reality, most do so far more often, sometimes every five minutes. of workers receive more 38% than 100 emails per day. Multitasking is at the root of the problem Multitasking, or more precisely task switching (going from one task to another) lengthens the time it takes to complete tasks by 25% to 100%, depending on their complexity 25% 28% 100% You lose on average 28% of your work day to multitasking ineffectiveness 3 How can you stay focused? Writing your objective down increases your likelihood of achieving it by 39,5% 39,5% Sharing your objective and progress reports with friends increases your likelihood of achieving it by 76,7% 76,7% Block your time (about half your day) to concentrate on your one most important objective Build a bunker Store provisions Find somewhere to work that takes you out of the path of disruption and interruption - even if this means leaving the office Have any supplies, materials, snacks, or beverages you need on hand and, other than for a bathroom break avoid leaving your bunker. Sweep for mines Enlist support Turn off your phone, shut down your email, and exit your Internet browser. Your most important work deserves 100% of your attention. Tell those most likely to seek you out what you're doing and when you'll be available. Distracted? How to (re)focus To read further, | consult our report « Distracted? Learn how to (re)focus » Business Digest no 241, October 2013 BUSINESS digest