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- 2 April, 2010 -
- Productivity -
- Tags : alerts, attention, gtd, offline, Productivity
- 11 Comments
In our connected life we’ve opened so many direct streams to our space that it feels we’ve bitten off more than we can chew. A couple of years ago someone would have to to call to get a hold of you. Now you can be reached through twitter, mail, MSN, Facebook, Google talk, blog and post comments or forums, just to name a few. And most of these have automatic alert systems. What happens? A little icon starts bouncing and your attention gripped. Well, you need to get offline to be connected. You need to focus to get stuff done. You need an offline project.
With all the possible interrupts, judging by the amount of friends you have, on different time zones, it’s safe to assume that you can’t go more than a few minutes without one of these apps (especially twitter and IM) firing up a notification: “You have 3 new messages”. Have you tried not clicking that little bouncing icon with an attractive red number? Try it, it’s really hard! And what happens? After 30 minutes of trying to focus you get into “the zone”, feeling like a productivity tycoon, and all of the sudden the little twittie bird starts bouncing. There goes “the zone” and there you go off to check the latest tweets. And your feeds. And your mail. What just happened? 30 minutes lost, that you won’t get back. This happens all to many times. And we need an answer. Welcome to my offline project.
The offline project
So, to be productive, and have time to check twitter, feeds, IM and the sorts, I’m getting offline and you should too.
The idea: maximize my online time by spending most of my time offline, specially at work.
The trick: Disconnect your network cable/wifi card at pre-determined times.
Time Slots
9h-9h30: Online. Mail, news, twitter check.
9h30-11h30: Offline! Focus! Work!
11h30: Online. Mail check. Available for instant messaging annoyance, lunch arrangements, social connecting.
Rinse and repeat in the afternoon, after you had lunch.
13h00-13h30: Online Stuff.
13h30-17h30: Offline!
18h00-18h30: Online Stuff and Home.
Fit this to your schedule, and there you go. No more time lost on Youtube or random chat on Facebook. This also educates your colleagues co-workers so that they know what to expect from you: you don’t have to constantly be hitting the “Send and Receive” button on your mail client to answer that one important mail that is coming down the pipe. People will get used to you replying at specifc times and thank you for it. If something truly important comes up, someone will call (this can also help you sort out what is important or not).
The importance of focus
The offline project was motivated by a need to focus, because focus is becoming more important than ever. Especially if you open many direct channels to you. And Leo Babauta of Zen Habits and mnmlist has nailed this on the head by publishing an online (free) ebook called the Focus Manifesto. This manifesto discusses the benefits of disconnection, which makes up for 95% of the inspiration for the offline project. Quoting some wisdom straight from the source:
“The Benefits of Disconnection: Why should we even consider disconnecting from the grid of information and communication? Let’s look at just a few reasons:
- You shut off the interruptions and distractions of email, Twitter, IM, blogs, news, and more.
- You give yourself space to focus and work.
- You allow yourself space to create.
- You can connect with real people without distractions.
- You can read, you know, books.
- You can accomplish a lot more.
- You allow yourself a break from the stress of overload.
- You can find quiet and peace of mind.
- You can reflect and contemplate.”
[...] This post started as a comment to a post in one my friends [...]
Nice method. I’ll try to follow it
Very nice, but it’s all a ruse for you not to get funny remarks from your friends during the day
Love this post…shared it via Twitter. Keep up the great work!
Most days are far from perfect and sometimes you cannot avoid spending the entire day reacting to interrupts (meetings, classes, students, papers, etc..).
Its important to get some time (isolated from the the rest of the world) to finish pending tasks, and actually work! However you must be flexible on how and when to do this.
After seeing the application of this method, i conclude:
You must prioritize emails (by subject, person, account, using tags, flags, status, smart folders, etc…), ignore most IM, ignore twitter/facebook during work, disable notifications, etc… in order to get some time for your work. Still some things must be solved in the span of a few minutes, and for that you must be aware of it.
Disconnecting the network card and ignoring most interruptions will get things done. Over time it will also lead to a life which is easier to manage, because less interruptions will occur. That is, you will be alone.
I would suggest this approach http://www.diogogomes.com/2010/04/03/trying-to-get-things-done/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ItsNotQuiteLikeThat+%28Diogo+Gomes+Blog%29
Seems must more balanced and is similar to what i follow.
I always think about that, and it´s very important to know how we waste time online… but…
1) I can´t be offline (it´s a vicious!)
2) I never write about that…
I will try…
Thank you all for the feedback. Of course this is always tentative and describes an ideal work day. But if we try to stay more offline and away from continuous notifications and interrupts, we can have more of those than interrupt-driven days, that is the point of having an offline project. However, you need to be fast on your feet, and if you stay on top of your game, you can harmonize your offline/online periods, creating a circle where the more you are productive, the more you are offline, and the more time you have to stay online.
By the way, just fixed the broken links in the post.
I think most people miss the central point in the message. Disconnecting the network cable is a metaphor, I now you are talking literally, but again, that’s not the main issue.
The main issue is focus. Focus and determination. My e-mail client is open all day, but I spend hours without going there. When people need-me to look at something they call-me or stop by my desk. It is a choice I do not to go click there every minute. It’s my determination. That determination helps me focus on work.
Instant messaging gets a similar treatment, with the difference that some people get ignored by hours, but co-workers only get some minutes. Other social things are last on the pile. Sometimes only get checked at home, when my brain switches from work-mode to home-mode.
Unplugging the network cable when possible is a god strategy, but my work does not allow-me to do that. So I do the metaphorical unplug, an rely on my determination. But hey, IM-me anytime to see how it is going
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