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You’re Distracted, Not Dumb

January 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Distraction & Lost IQ

Do you feel distracted at work?  Do you see your colleagues as distracted?  Chances are, you answered yes to both.  I’m sure distraction has been a problem since the beginning of time, but I have a hard time believing it has ever exceeded the distractions of today.  We have technology like never before, and we are tied to it whether at home, in the car, or at work.  Don’t get me wrong, all our gadgets are awesomely freeing- we can go anywhere and do almost anything with our little cell phones.  However, that freedom comes with a price tag- it’s hard to cut our ties. Thus, while we’re doing homework with our kids, while we’re cooking dinner, and yes, while we’re at work, we’re constantly glancing down at our phones.  Check out this 2005 study:

  • 1 in 5 workers will interrupt a business or social engagement to respond to a message.
  • 9 out of 10 people thought colleagues who answered messages during face-to-face meetings were rude.  Interestingly, 3 out of 10 believed it was not only acceptable, but a sign of diligence and efficiency.
  • Ultimately, this level of distraction is equivalent to a 10 point IQ loss.

These distractions have never been more costly.  The brain suffers from distraction.  Trying to balance work, co-worker conversations, internet interests (personal and otherwise), and all kinds of messages can’t be anything other than distracting.

More on IQ loss

In 80 clinical studies, Dr. Glenn Wilson of King’s College London University found that distracted workers lost 10 IQ points, the equivalent of a lost night of sleep and more than two times worse than smoking marijuana (a 4-point loss).   While I cannot speak to drugs, after nursing 3 babies through the night, I can attest to how difficult it is to function during the day without a full night of sleep.

Sound Masking for Better IQ & Fewer Losses

Workers find themselves distracted more than 2 hours every day, and the most commonly reported distraction is not the internet or messages- it’s co-worker conversation.  If you find yourself distracted, a simple way to combat this kind of distraction is to use white noise, as found in a sound machine.  This low-level background noise serves as a buffer for you when so much is going on around you.

If you struggle with office noise and distraction, trying a sound machine just might increase your productivity.

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8 Ways to Improve Your Productivity & Efficiency

December 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas…

It’s a weird time of year- Thanksgiving is over, Christmas is looming, and there is a lot to get done…yet, the mind often wanders and attention drifts, and before you know it, the day is gone and very little has been accomplished.  Even when it’s not the Christmas season, full of stress, shopping, visiting family, school programs, and extra activities, the average worker is distracted more than 2 hours every day.  I imagine that number increases during the holidays.

If you find yourself daydreaming, stressing, or just being plain old unproductive, try some of these tips to help you get more out of your day so that when your Christmas break comes, you can actually take a break and not worry about all that you didn’t get done on time.

Tips to increase productivity and efficiency

  • Prioritize your day – Instead of losing the first hour of the day to email and catching up, try to start with the most important tasks first thing in the morning.  Even if you’re not a morning person, you usually are the freshest then and you also ensure that something important gets done.
  • Use white noise – Random office noise, completely unrelated to you and your work, consumes almost two hours a day for most people. Try out this free white noise generator to see if you could benefit from masking the miscellaneous noise at work.
  • Establish a ‘No-Interruption’ Mode – Set aside a specific period of time each day or at least a couple times a week in which you turn off all distractions, including but not limited to Facebook, Instant Messenger, email and even your phone.  You may have to book an unused conference room to make the most of this time.  Then, at the end of your time, take a short break to check your phone and email.
  • Take a break – Get up from you chair and walk around. About once an hour, stretch your muscles, look around and breathe deeply. This will help relieve stress, relax your muscles and increase blood flow to your brain.
  • Drink more water – Your brain is about 75% water. Getting even slightly dehydrated can decrease your productivity and energy by up to 20%. Interestingly, if you feel thirsty, you are already on your way to dehydration!  Thus, keep a water bottle at your desk.  If you’re like me and prefer coffee, tea, or even Coke, try to at least match your other beverage consumption with water.
  • Sit up straight – Good posture one of the most important changes any computer user can make to improve comfort and productivity. The ultimate goal is to maintain a neutral typing posture while using your computer more productively.  Start with a good, ergonomic chair and adjust it to support your body. Move the back rest up or down to find the angle that best fits the curve of your back. Make sure your lower back has enough support, or add portable lumbar support. Lower your chair height so your feet rest firmly on the floor and adjust your arm rests to provide easy elbow and arm movement.
  • Get Organized – Clear off all the clutter on your desk and stop wasting time looking for things. Place the frequently used items, like your phone or stapler, within easy reach. Try using an adjustable keyboard tray to open more space on your desk, and to allow for better typing posture.
  • Upgrade your keyboard – Ergonomic keyboards are designed to help you type faster, more comfortably and more efficiently. Try out several different keyboards to find one that best fits your hands. Give yourself a few weeks to adjust to the new fit and style.

Eliminate distractions by turning off your phone or email, and by adding a personal, free white noise generator to your work. Increasing your comfort with a well-designed, ergonomic chair or upgrading to an ergonomic keyboard can also help you remain productive all day long.

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White Noise can Increase Productivity at Work

June 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Do you find it hard to concentrate at work? The average worker loses over two hours a day because of distractions and interruptions at work. Here are some helpful tips to help reduce the distractions around you and increase your productivity at work.

Prioritize your day every morning by listing out your most important tasks or projects. Start your day by working on a high priority task while you are fresh and motivated. Don’t allow lesser tasks like e-mail take up more time than they warrant. Accomplishing something at the very start of the day can help boost your confidence and improve your attitude about your work day.

Use white noise to block excess office noise, instead of wasting time and energy trying to block the extra conversations around us. If you have never used white noise, try out this free white noise generator to see you find it helpful at work.  With white noise, the interruptive sounds and distracting discussions fade into the background.

Eliminate self-inflicted distractions! A recent study found that people tend to distract themselves at work as often as others distract them. Try turning off your self-distractions, such as email or phones, and turn on a personal sound machine to block surround noise. Spend 30 to 60 minutes focusing solely on a high priority task. At the end of your time, take a short break to check email and then get back to your distraction-free work.

Stand up and walk around when you start to feel stiff or struggle with concentration. A little movement can relieve muscle strain and increase blood circulation to the brain. A study at USC recently found that standing can increase brain function by 5% to 20%. Dehydration can also decrease your productivity by more than 20 percent, so have a drink of water on your break.

You can learn to accomplish more during a work day by eliminating. Start by using a white noise machine to block removing the time-consuming distractions and office conversations. Try taking a break from email and phone calls for a while and turn on some white noise to help you concentrate.  At the end of the day you will feel less stressed, more productive and able to leave on time for a relaxing evening.



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Using White Noise Against Unwanted Noise

May 20, 2011 By 1 Comment

Staying Focused at Work

It’s no surprise that people get distracted at work- we all do.  Sometimes we’re thinking about our children or mentally planning a vacation…or maybe we’re paying bill online or just day dreaming.  Those are our own distractions.  Interestingly, these internal distractions are not nearly as detrimental to our productivity as external distractions, such as co-worker gossip and other conversational distractions.  In fact, most workers lose more than 2 hours of productivity to distraction, namely conversational distraction.

Thus, it’s not a huge jump to say that distracted workers are not as productive as focused ones.  They are disengaged, thinking about other things, listening to water cooler gossip, taking part in discussions, bets, and stories being passed around.  Even when they want to be focused, they are held captive by other people’s noise, including all their gadgets and exotic ring tones….oh, well, yes, they’re held prey by their own gadgetry as well. Who doesn’t drop what they’re doing when a text beeps in or your cell phone rings?

Using Noise Against Noise

Pretty simple, yet a difficult problem.  You can’t exactly tell people, “Stop being distracted….And quit answering your phone.”  If only it were that easy.  However, there is an easy solution: sound machines.  By using a little white noise and even nature sounds you can tune out a lot of superfluous noise and distraction.  Basically white noise serves as a weapon against unwanted sound- it presents a consistent sound that covers the entire sound spectrum so that unwanted noises don’t penetrate.  You can use standard white noise that sounds like fan, or there are tons of nature sounds to choose from.  And, interestingly enough, the extra noise you’re adding with your little machine is just enough to help cover the unwanted sounds without proving to be a distraction itself.  The result is that you can actually focus on work and not on what the cubicle next to you is doing.

If office noise is keeping you from being productive, try this free online white noise generator or upgrade to your own sound machine so you can reclaim your lost time at work.

 

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Distracted at Work

May 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Meg May Be Sleepless in Seattle, but I’m Distracted at Work

Are you distracted at work?  Is it crazy frustrating to actually want to work and not be able to because of interruptions.
If you are in fact “distracted at work,” why not try a white noise machine at your desk. It may not be as exciting as headphones, but it’s a lot more effective because a sound machine doesn’t prove to be a distraction itself {ever found yourself typing the lyrics inadvertently in an email?}.  What it does do is drown out background noise so that you can focus on what you are doing, instead of trying to concentrate through office drama or co-worker chatter.

Plus, studies show that less noise {via a sound machine}  are extremely helpful in more focus, less tress, and fewer errors.  Studies have found that offices that utilized white noise showed an average of 48% improvement in their ability to focus on tasks, a 51% improvement in elimination of distractions {especially overheard conversations}, and a 27% improvement in lowered stress levels.

A small portable option for a white noise machine is the Sound Oasis Travel White Noise Therapy System. It’s the Mighty Mouse of the sound machines- tiny, but it can beat up all the big distractions Even better, since its portable, you can take it home with you to help you get better sleep at night.

If you don’t need a portable option, the Sound Oasis Deluxe Office White Noise System is a great choice. It’s not as small as the travel sound machine, but it does have a lot more features, including 20 main sounds & 5 mix sounds create 120 sound environment possibilities.

A free option to just try out the whole white noise thing is a free online white noise generator. Just keep it open in a background browser window and you’ll be well on your way to working–without as much distraction and stress.

If office noise and the resulting distractions are keeping you from work, try a free online generator or a sound machine to tune out what’s bothering you.

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Distracted at Work

February 21, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Distracted at Work

Retro Sandwich Bag I am sure my son needs...

I have been sitting here, thinking about how I should be working for about an hour and a half.  I’m on a computer, so there’s endless distractions there: email, Facebook, add a few status updates myself, fix a blog post I wrote for today, go ahead and link it up to Facebook and a few other sites, get absorbed in an Etsy site because shopping for re-usable, laminate, retro snack bags is a whole lot more fun than working, remember that I should be working, try to focus, stare out window instead due to passery-by who are fairly loud and break my minute of concentration, shake off street noise, only to hear my son wake prematurely from his nap….

I’m sad to say that I am not the only one who “works” like this.  And it’s not just because I work from home.  It’s easy to assume that distraction happens because you’re surrounded by so many familiar things in the comfort of your own home.  And, that’s definitely true- home can be incredibly distracting.  But is it really that different from work?  At work, you’re online almost constantly and your cell phone is within arm’s reach at all times, especially if you dropped kids off at school or day care.  You may not take all the comforts of home with you, but you definitely take its worries.

And it’s not just online temptations that distract us. While the average worker is distracted more than 2 hours every day, the majority of that 120 minutes is due to conversational distraction!  A surprise, but not really when you think of how often you’re pulled into a conversation, friendly bet, or water cooler gossip.  Even when you don’t want to be distracted by conversations, you can’t tune them all out…or can you?

Many office and home workers alike have turned to sound machines and the various forms of white noise they offer.  By its nature, white noise pretty much forces the brain to tune out surrounding sound so much so that people can stay focused longer (and even sleep better!).

{*Go here for the sandwich bag.}

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Use a Sound Machine to Reduce Distractions at Work

January 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Do you find yourself constantly distracted at work? Are you frustrated by how long it takes to do tasks because you just keep getting  interrupted?  Have you talked to your boss about it, but not gotten much, if any, help?

If this is the situation you find yourself in, I would encourage you to try using a white noise machine at your desk. Unlike music, it doesn’t divert your attention at all from what you are supposed to be concentrating on. What it does is drown out background noise so that you can focus on what you are doing, instead of trying to concentrate through the office drama of “what Jimmy said to Sally after this crazy thing happened.” Even better, studies show that it can help you focus better and feel less stressed. Studies have found that offices that utilized white noise showed an average of 48% improvement in their ability to focus on tasks, a 51% improvement in elimination of distractions (especially overheard conversations), and a 27% improvement in lowered stress levels.

A small portable option for a white noise machine is the Sound Oasis Travel White Noise Therapy System. I like to think of this as the Mighty Mouse of the sound machines. It is tiny in stature, but can beat up all the big distractions keeping you from doing what you are supposed to be doing–working. Even better, since its portable, you can take it home with you to help you get better sleep at night.

If you don’t want a portable option, the Sound Oasis Deluxe Office White Noise System is a nice option. Its not as small as the travel sound machine, but it does have a lot more features, including 20 main sounds & 5 mix sounds create 120 sound environment possibilities.

If you aren’t convinced and would just like to try it out, you could try a free online white noise generator. Just keep it open in a background browser window and you’ll be well on your way to working–without as much distraction and stress.

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Are You Distracted at Work?

October 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Distracted

It's a bad sign when you get distracted from the distraction itself.

Did you know that Joe Worker is distracted more than 2 hours every day?  Of course you did, that’s why you’re reading this.  You’re either looking for ways to avoid distraction or, worse, you’re in the midst of being distracted by the internet.  Either way, it’s nice to know you’re not alone.  Seriously- every worker is distracted at various points throughout the day and the cost of that distraction is actually more than 2 hours.  Think about distractions themselves.

  • Example 1: You’re busily working when a friend IM’s you or Facebooks you or you notice you have 12 new emails or a favorite blog just went live, etc.  You switch over to tend to these more exciting pursuits and not only do you lose time doing it, you also take half and hour to get back on track work-wise as you ponder the contents of said interchange.
  • Example 2: Through no fault of your own, you find yourself drawn into a heated exchange between 2 co-workers.  Whether you’re unintentionally eavesdropping or are actually pulled into the fray, it’s a challenging task indeed to keep working even when the conflict ceases.

As you can see, those minutes of distraction add up quickly.

How to Minimize Distractions at Work

The important thing to try to figure out which distractions are part of working and which ones can be eliminated, or at least reduced.  For instance, using your computer is usually part and parcel to working in a modern office.  However, you can take control of how you use it.

  • If personal emails distract you, try only checking on breaks and shutting it down, rather than minimizing it.  That way you wont be tempted to constantly check it.
  • If co-worker issues are exactly that- issues- try to book a conference room every now and then to get a change of scenery.
  • You can’t always escape from your desk, so you might want to try a sound machine.  For a taste of what white noise is and what it can do to help block out irritating distractions, take a look at this free online generator.

Those are just a few ideas for minimizing distractions at work.  Based on your specific work set-up, you’ll be able to determine which might benefit you.

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If You Don’t Ask, The Answer is Always No

August 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

As I was perusing one of the blogs I read, I came across a link to a very helpful article.  This gentleman has adopted as one of his mottos the phrase, “if you don’t ask, the answer is always no.”  I have heard this before, but this time it really made me start thinking. I am always so hesitant to ask people things because I don’t want to inconvenience them or I don’t want anything to be awkward–even if I don’t know the person I am asking and will most likely never see them again.

I also started thinking about how this might relate to you. How could you use this to help yourself be less distracted by your coworkers and more able to focus? I thought of a few ways.

  • Tell your boss you are having difficulty concentrating due to all the conversational distraction and ask for help in this area. You could mention how beneficial sound masking has been in other places. Perhaps your boss didn’t even realize how big of a problem it is.
  • Nicely ask your coworkers to please not disturb you. This could be done in person or with a sign on your cubicle or on the front of your desk. A funny sign can get the point across without being offensive. (Passive-aggressiveness pays off sometimes!) Perhaps your coworkers don’t know that their constant chatter is really bothering you.
  • Are there other things keeping your from being able to concentrate besides your noisy coworkers? Sometimes changing the way your desk is set up so that it is more ergonomically correct can help to get rid of all those aches you get from sitting in front of a computer all day. Its hard to concentrate when your shoulders are killing you. You might want to ask your boss for a better chair or a different keyboard to help with this.

So, what is keeping you from a less stressful and more productive day? It might be just a simple question to the right person.

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Using Social Support to Stay Motivated

May 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A study recently came out from Stanford “showing that small amounts of social support, ranging from friends who encourage each other by email to occasional meetings with a fitness counselor, can produce large and lasting gains against one of America’s biggest health problems—physical inactivity.” Now, you may be wondering how this is applicable to this blog since the topic is Noisy Coworkers, not Unhealthy Coworkers. Stay with me for a minute while I explain.

Your Work Buddy may have to close the mini-blinds for you so you can actually concentrate.

I would like to propose that you could also use social support to help keep yourself on track while you are working. I know. Gasp! We are always decrying conversational distraction, among many other forms. However, there are just some days, like today when it is SO nice outside and I keep finding myself peering through the mini-blinds, wishing I was outside, that it would be nice to have a Work Buddy to gently encourage me to stay on track and to keep going. I suspect you might have the same problem occasionally–you have blocked out all the other distractions, but your mind just keeps wandering. Perhaps you could then inform your Work Buddy that it would be nice if, every once in a while, they would email you or just walk over and say “You can do it! Keep working!” or something similarly encouraging. It sounds cheesy, but based on the results of that study, I bet it would work.

So, I’ll be your Work Buddy today. “You can do it! Keep working!” (And now I am going to go close my mini-blinds so the gorgeous weather will quit calling out to me.)

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