The Nr. 1 reason for failure: "(Digital) Distraction"!
Michel Fran?ois Bolle
CEO Hinni AG | Industrial valves expert | Empowering people to change their lives | Building amazing teams | Former Swiss Volleyball National Team Coach | Acting to make a difference | Author | Family Man
The latest research shows that some people spend 50% of their work time on "distraction". They check their social media feeds, their messages and send useless "hello's" and "how are you's" to anyone in the world through instant message services.
Some people spend their best hours of the day watching videos of dancing dogs or cats and following some else's life on their social media feed.
(What is the added-value to your life watching "dancing cats"?)
This behaviour generates billions and billions of losses for companies and the global economy. Even worse, most people are totally unaware of their real potential at work and in their private life. If they would more focus on the essential things, instead of spending their day following their movie idols, their output would experience massive growth.
Applications and social media sites today are built to get people addicted to it. A good example is "Facebook – Likes". In today's world, some people only measure their happiness-level on the number of likes they get on their posts.
Typically "distraction" most of the time ends up in failure. Work is submitted too late, or of poor quality as finished in the last moment. The family life is also suffering, as there is no more exchange when mom, dad and the two daughters spend the common souper, on their phones and tablets.
The Titans and Game-Changers in this world, have found ways to beat this distraction. This is the main reason why they can produce a massive quality performance at work, and at the same time, ensure a quality family life.
Here are my three Success-Keys I use every day to overcome distraction:
No. 1 Success Key to overcome distraction
- I turned off all notifications on my smartphone, tablet and PC!
… I decide and plan the times and moments when I check messages, emails and social feeds.
No. 2 Success-Key to overcome distraction
- I create on my agenda "bubble-tight times" where no one is allowed to disturb me
… If you want to be "wordclass" producer, you must be monomaniacally focussed on the Task you are working on. Inform your staff, your bosses about your "bubble-tigh times"! They will not only respect it, but eventually also apply it to their own work.
No. 3 Success-Key to overcome distraction
- Separate business from private life and let people surrounding you respecting it.
… A right life balance between work and private life is a crucial factor to success and "world-class" results. When I'm at work, then I work and do not chat with my children or wife. And during family time, I focus on the family and don't spend time answering emails.
These 3 simple Succes-Key's to overcome distraction will not only change your life forever, but you will become a real "world-class" producer.
For today's Business Leaders, the real challenge is to implement such behaviour within their teams and let it become a real work-culture.
The other day, I met one of the Swiss Legends in the Aviation business, and he explained to me that he had implemented lately the 15 minutes Facebook/Twitter/Instagram rule in his company. Every day from 10h00 – 10h15, all employees are allowed to check and work on their social media platforms. What a great idea!
After a few weeks only, they could measure a massive improvement in productivity.
Overall the questions of how to beat "distraction" should in the future also be implemented in School and University learning plans.
The real Titans and Legends of tomorrow will be those who can handle social media, messages and emails smartly and effectively.
Michel F. Bolle – 22.3.2020
(Pictures : pixabay.com)
Consultant certifié Bilan Carbone? et Stratégie Climat I Animateur de la Fresque du Climat I Shifter I
4 年Thank you for these advices Michel!? At Let Me Think, we decided to create a separate space on our phones, dedicated to our needs while working. In this working space : no more notifications and useless apps, just the one you really need. To switch to this distraction-less space on our phones, we touch a NFC device on our office desk.?This way, we literally have two different spaces on our phones, one for work, and one for leisure. As entrepreneurs, it really changed the way we worked!
Business Development - équipements pour Procédés Industriels - Support technique et Commercial
4 年Thanks Michel for this new exemple on how to prioritize the fundamentals. We are in a crazy World where pinuts are more important than the best enjoying things : the company which offer our money to live, and the family which remains the only one priority to recover ??
Commercial and Residential Real Estate Consultant
4 年Very good advice. Now to implement. I am in Real Estate where cutomers expect instant respone or they move on to the next agent. How do you overcome that? Ie Fb, FB Messenger, Text, Email web leads, Serveral Real Estate apps as well.
Supporting Small Business Growth with Branding, Marketing & Connecting
4 年Permission to limit FOMO time? Brilliant! Thank you Michel Fran?ois Bolle! For this reminder and checklist!
Fleet Operations
4 年I think it's a great idea implementing the 15min rule in most work places, as it would greatly improve productivity, even at home and places of learning... A lovely call I'll say of this write up