avatarMathias Barra

Summary

The article discusses the importance of setting boundaries at work to maintain focus and productivity, particularly through the use of "Do Not Disturb" statuses and selective email and instant message responses.

Abstract

The author, a project manager dealing with a high volume of daily emails and messages, emphasizes the necessity of using "Do Not Disturb" modes to manage interruptions effectively. Despite the transition from Skype to Microsoft Teams, which made it harder to block notifications, the author has developed a strategy to prioritize important tasks by categorizing message urgency and limiting responses to non-urgent communications. The article advocates for focusing on one's own responsibilities and not succumbing to the pressure of immediate replies, suggesting that batching emails and concentrating on flow activities can lead to better job performance and satisfaction.

Opinions

  • The author values the "Do Not Disturb" feature as a means to minimize distractions and focus on work.
  • Instant messages and emails that are not urgent should be handled later to avoid disrupting important tasks.
  • The expectation of immediate replies is unrealistic and can be detrimental to productivity.
  • Prioritizing one's own responsibilities over others' requests is crucial for job effectiveness.
  • Batching emails helps in managing workload and achieving periods of uninterrupted work.
  • The author believes that it is impossible to be liked by everyone, so it's better to focus on doing a good job.
  • "Busy" and "Do Not Disturb" statuses should be respected as indicators of the user's need for uninterrupted work time.

When People Don’t Get That You’re “Busy”, Stop Replying

To really be helpful, close the door. For now.

Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

At work, my favorite status on Skype was “Do not disturb”. That magnificent status that gets rid of all the pointless chitchat and emails. Oh, I loved it so much.

In my job, I get a lot of emails. No, really. A lot. I remember my boss telling me during my training that I should quickly learn to handle 100 mails a day. I thought this was an exaggeration to emphasize the workload. Turns out, it was the opposite. A huge understatement.

On a good day, I get 200 emails, that’s one every 2.4 minutes in an 8-hour-day. On crazier days, it easily goes up to 400–500. Once I got 800. On “very low” days, I get about 150. I took 4 days off a few weeks ago and came back to more than 2,000 emails.

Photo by Author. The second number is for one client alone.

Add to this all the Skype conversations and it’s impossible to do any kind of task concentrated. This is why the “Do not disturb” status felt like a gift from heaven when I discovered it.

I used it day after day. Sometimes for I’d spend complete afternoons with it on, even though I was replying to emails. I wanted those notifications gone.

And then my company switched to Microsoft Teams. If the “Do not disturb” Skype status was a gift from God, Teams comes from the Devil’s lair.

On the surface, it does the same thing as Skype but better. The interface is well done. In reality, it automatically switches to “Away” if you stop touching your computer for a minute. The “Do not Disturb” status is now just that. A status. It doesn’t block any notification. Mails come through. Instant messages do too.

And that’s where people come in.

Everybody has tasks on their table. Everybody wants to get certain projects off of it. Some of us started early in the day, others late. Some are in Asia, others are in the West.

The result? Messages come and go at any time of the day, from countless people. If you have no solution to block the notifications, people will keep harassing you.

When I started this job, I received instant messages throughout the night because I set my status as “Away”. Are you really expecting an answer at 3 a.m.? Wouldn’t an email be better? It’s not as if one extra mail will change much anyway.

Even after I started disconnecting from Skype after work hours, I often started the day with a mail telling me I had received messages while I was disconnected. I mean. Come on.

My job as a project manager in a localization company forces me to work with colleagues who live far away. Mails and, now, Microsoft Teams are the only two ways we communicate.

So when I have an important task that needs my concentration and still get interrupted on Teams, I play a game.

The moment I see the notification pop, I verify the time of the day and give a probability to the message:

  1. Already been answered by mail
  2. A pointless exchange that, either way, will need to be repeated by mail so that the rest of the team knows the status
  3. Content that we need to discuss but can wait
  4. Actual important content to discuss right away

The fourth category, the only one that deserves disturbing someone busy, amounts to about 2–3%. At most. And it always starts with something in the vein of “Hey Mathias, can you talk?”

So when I get any of the other types with a typical “Hi Mathias”, I don’t even open Teams until I have at least 5 messages. Only then can I be sure the other person has said what they needed to. I then reply with a brief,

“Hi, sorry I’m busy now and can’t help. Send me a mail so I can have a look later. Cheers.”

If more questions come my way, I don’t reply anymore. None of the rest matters. If anything more urgent also had to be discussed, then it would have been the first thing said. I can move on and get back to my most important task.

I used to keep replying and be harsher as the messages passed but, obviously, that wasn’t a good solution. I’d waste time and create a negative relationship with my interlocutor.

Nobody has a pointless job. In every company, jobs exist to fulfill a purpose. We all have different agendas. They often merge in some aspects, but you should never put someone else’s priorities above yours. You were assigned responsibilities and they come first.

For someone to ask you to make their task higher on your responsibility list is wrong at best. Disrespectful at worst.

When I started my job, I was told we should always reply to a client within the hour at most. As much as possible, I should reply within 10 minutes. I followed that rule for almost 2 years until I noticed my clients didn’t care. The situation was what mattered.

If they had an urgent project, then they wanted a quick reply. Still, that meant they wanted an answer within the next 2–3 hours, not 10 minutes. For the rest, all they want is an answer within the same day.

The more you reply to emails, the more emails you get in return. I now batch my emails. This way I can stay concentrated on other tasks that matter more.

I can thus enter short bursts of flow activities. It can be to prepare a complex invoice or a report. Answering emails has become a flow activity as well. By batching them, I get to have an overview of all my current work in one go.

I see that project X is late and needs some follow up. I see that project Y is about to start and internal preparations need to be done. I see that project Z received awful feedback and further investigation is needed. I even see that there are 10 mails I can transfer to my “pointless exchanges” box to ignore.

Some people will dislike you for not replying to all their emails or instant messages. That’s not your problem. Do you prefer doing a good job or being liked by everybody? Let me rephrase that. Do you prefer handling something in your control or something that isn’t?

The second is impossible. No matter how much you try, some people will always dislike you, sometimes without any reason whatsoever. I’ve tried and failed miserably countless times. So why not focus on what you can act upon?

In my response to people, I am both being helpful and closing the door. My reply to non-urgent messages is still saying that I’ll have a look… later. I will help. When I’m done with my own priorities.

Be a bit harsh towards people. Refuse once in a while. Be helpful when you can, and only then. Focus on your tasks first.

And don’t send a message to someone whose status is “Busy” or “Do Not Disturb”. They exist for a reason.

Work
Business
Focus
Self Improvement
Productivity
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