How to handle random interruptions at work
Joseph McCormack
Helping professionals think clearly and communicate concisely through the clutter. Author, entrepreneur and podcast host.
Just last week, I called a co-worker out of the blue. "Do you have a minute?" There was a slight hesitation. "Sure, what do you need?" It all seemed pretty harmless, but something went terribly wrong in that short exchange.
You're deep in thought and someone disrupts you. You need something and impulsively just barge right in. It happens every day, all the time. What can we do but give in?
In my experience teaching leaders how to communicate well, I notice that these brief "gotta minute" moments get overlooked. Nobody seems to know what to do, on either side of the story.
Let's break an interruption down by looking at what each of us could have done better.
What the "trespasser" did wrong
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What the "victim" did wrong
Interruptions happen, we all know that. We also need to realize there's a price to be paid when done thoughtlessly. Whether we are causing or responding to them, they need to be managed much better. A research study at the University of California at Irvine said that it takes around twenty-three minutes for most people to get back on task after an interruption.
Looking back at how I interrupted my colleague, I admit I could have handled it much better.
The BRIEF Lab The Quiet Workplace Scott H. Stalker Jose Morales Philip Kornachuk Jeff Hutchins Brian Sperling, PhD Gerald Perritt Dave Leach Dave Charbonneau ???? Mike Bechtel Mike Theroux Charley Thornton #quietworks #bebrief #noise #interruptions #deepwork
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7 个月Be brief. Be courteous, And protect your time. A "Got a minute" request can derail your day... IF YOU LET IT. One??is to schedule regular 1:1 time and also keep a "list" for those who might be on the receiving end and block time accordingly. And set the?.
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7 个月Intriguing discussion point Joseph and I appreciate the tag. Options like: ?Establishing communication rules in the workplace, avoiding unnecessary distractions. ?Plan for interruptions, set aside time in your schedule. ?Practicing mindfulness to mitigate and reduce the 2??3?? minutes. Ultimately it’s important to be transparent to yourself and the perpetrator to state and identify when the conducive time for discussion (intentional) is.
Well said, Joe! Rather than jump right into this, I thought I'd wait a minute...or two. I remember many, many years ago when our CEO emailed me a request after hours. I needed to answer quickly, right? Afterall, he was the CEO. I had a couple of questions about his request, so I called him. His response, "I didn't mean for you to respond tonight!". This was a great teaching and learning moment which he used during a subsequent staff meeting. Impactful to this day.
Back to school, this time at Stanford.
8 个月Go, Joseph McCormack! Lots of times people interrupt to say they have a quick question. The problem is that it's often not a quick answer!
This is one of the great uses for text, Slack or Teams: “Please call me when you have 5 minutes, I need your guidance on a template I just drafted”