7th January 2011
`The effectiveness of work increases according to geometric progression if there are no interruptions'
Andre Maurois
Focus, concentration and continuity are the three prerequisites for achieving great results. We all have goals and we also know that we have to work hard to reach the same. Most of us plan or day also. However, something happens and we lose track of our day. Before we realize, the day has disappeared.
We all want to have an uninterrupted day so that we can concentrate on our work. But an uninterrupted day is a myth. A perfectly normal day is a day full of interruptions and we should learn how to get back to our job after every interruption. In fact, we will not like a day without any interruption. Can you visualize a day when you are not interrupted at all – no phone calls, not meetings, not drop in visitors? Will you like it?
It is not the absence of interruption, but the ability to manage interruptions short, which will make us great. We should have a plan of action for having a long span of uninterrupted time between spells of interruptions. We should develop an ability to anticipate and prevent interruptions. We should also learn how to come out of interruptions.
In my time management workshops, I used to ask the participants to log their interruptions for a complete week so that they understand who and why they interrupted. This information will help us to deal with interruptions as they arise.
It will be useful to plan for `insulation and isolation'. This means to disappear to some place so that we are not interrupted at all. However, we have to do it tactfully without causing any inter personal problem.
N C Sridharan
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