Tips for Dealing With Unplanned Workday Disruptions

Workday disruptions are one of the biggest enemies of productivity. In fact, after we experience an interruption and stop working on a task, it can take a long time for our brains to refocus on our original task.

Considering all the interruptions that can occur during our workday, from meetings to message notifications, this can present a problem.

If you’re looking to get your workplace’s productivity back on track, check out these tips for dealing with unplanned workday disruptions.

Identify Your Biggest Interruptions

We are often unaware of how much time we lose during the day until the workday ends and we find ourselves behind. That’s why discovering what is disrupting our workday is essential.

A few common workday interruptions include:

• Meetings
• Notifications
• Emails
• Co-workers
• Unexpected tasks from managers

If you’re working at home, the number of possible interruptions is even higher.

Beyond family members and pets, it’s easier for our eyes to wander to things we can do around the house like laundry, dishes, or browsing the internet.

Don’t Attempt To Multitask

When an interruption comes, it’s easy to think that we can simply keep working despite it.

However, contrary to widespread belief, the human mind can’t really multitask. According to an article from Forbes, our IQ drops while we’re multitasking, and our productivity drops to as low as 40 percent.

The best thing you can do to deal with unplanned workplace interruptions is to focus all your attention on the new issue. That way, you can resolve it faster and then devote your attention to the original task.

Manage Notification Checking

Email messages, Microsoft Teams notifications, and text messages can eat up more of your workday than you think.

Finding ways to address these notifications without them hijacking the rest of the day is crucial.

Here are a few tricks you can try:

• Setting up specified times of day for answering emails
• Limiting email sessions to 20-minute increments
• Turning off notifications from workplace message systems for specified times of day
• Communicating with your teammates about times of day you are available to answer questions
• Keeping cell phones plugged in in a different room during the workday

Have Plans in Place for Large Interruptions

While you can effectively manage and avoid some disruptions, others are beyond your control.

Some circumstances impact your entire workplace, like natural disasters, power outages, and the internet going down, none of which have a quick fix.

For situations like this that are impossible to avoid, the best thing you can do is have a plan in place to prevent further blows to your workplace safety or productivity.

For example, if there’s a power outage, have a plan in place for how long employees should wait for it to pass.

Also, remember power outages can lead to power surges, which can damage your equipment, leading to further delays.

Take precautions like unplugging equipment so you’ll be able to get back to business after workday disruptions are over.