Those disturbances are part of the job for Josh
Quittner. As the editor of the magazine "Business 2.0", he knows that no
matter what he's working on - there will be an interruption.
"At any given moment, I'm balancing meetings with people, emails,
instant messages, phone calls, cell phone calls," said Quittner.
That doesn't include the co-workers who simply drop by. A hidden video
camera captures 13 people coming in and out of josh's office in just one
hour.
"Yeah, it was actually a slow day," said Josh.
While Josh seems to manage it, many people are wondering: How can I get
anything done?
"There's so many more interruptions, doing tasks at once, the
multi-tasking. The problem is - maybe nothing gets done, everything's put
off," said John Challenger, workforce consultant.
The challenge in the workplace is: how do you block out your co-workers
without appearing rude? If you have an office door, the solution is easy
-- simply close the door and, perhaps, put out a "do not disturb" sign.
But if you work in an open office environment, or in a cubicle, it's a bit
more difficult to get others to leave you alone.
At Chicago's Quarasan Company, employees have a simple way of telling
others to politely 'stay away'. It's called a "focus zone". If employees
are working on the educational materials the company creates and don't
want to be bothered, a sign does the trick.
"It's a great opportunity to hone-in on what you need to do and know
that you won't be disturbed, because people respect your time,' said Tina
Mickens, Quarasan.
The message applies right up to the top of the management ladder.
"How many times have you said to yourself: 'If I just had a couple of
hours, with nobody bothering me, I could get this done?'" said Quarasan
President Randi Brill. "Well, we took away the "if.. just" and we gave
people that opportunity and it really works."
That's the no cost solution. For less than $30, companies can buy
banners that stretch across cubicle openings. They are called Cubedoors.
"It gives you enough privacy, but also gives some openness, so you're
not cooped up," said Diane McMillan, Cubedoor user.
For a high-tech solution, there's something called "pink noise". It's
available from Herman-Miller, the office furniture company. Tiny speakers
create a whooshing-sound, much like an air conditioner.
The noise masks the sound of the human voice so employees can work
oblivious to the conversations of co-workers' around them.
"It's not because there's less noise, it's because the voice is masked,
so people are focused on what other people are saying around them," said
Peter Kahn, Herman-Miller, Inc.
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