Our information-rich environment is full of distractions. Don’t add to the confusion with distracting communication habits.
Quick, Cheap, and Easy is not Enough
Jim interrupts a meaningful moment with his kids to respond to a trivial text message; Sarah hits reply all on a sensitive email message, upsetting dozens of colleagues; Bill’s phone vibrates throughout his anniversary dinner, causing him to lose his train of thought (he was saying something about love, happiness, something…); and Lynn can’t adequately focus on her boss’s instructions because new messages keep chiming in on her computer.
These distortions are symptoms of a major underlying problem…
Getting Things Done in an Age of Distraction
Is it possible that we’ve created a working environment where countless distractions and trivial pursuits guarantee that we get less done—with increasing effort—each passing day? Recent research illuminates our contemporary struggle to harness our precious attention in an age of distraction and points toward a solution.
Reduce Conversational Distractions
Distracted communication is degraded communication. Eliminate distractions wherever possible, and minimize their impact when they cannot be avoided. Don’t accept distractions at face value—if you can eliminate, moderate or otherwise reduce a distraction in your environment, do it, and your communication will almost certainly improve.