Becoming "Indistractable" : Part 2 - External Triggers

In part 1 I talked about internal triggers and some tactics that Nir Eyal suggests in his book “Indistractable” such as examining them and then re-imaginging them. In part 2, I’m going to cover external triggers and how, in Eyal’s parlance, to hack them back.

He suggests some simple ideas such as cleaning up your computer desktop, Marie-Kondo-style so that you only have the file you’re currently working on there or one folder with the handful of things you’re completing.

Clean up your computer desktop, Marie-Kondo-style

He also suggests reducing the technology interruptions that you get by silencing notifications for email, instant messaging and putting your phone on vibrate. There are a couple of challenges with this approach. One is, there may be times when you want notifications on so turning them on and off multiple times during the day can become a chore and one more thing to remember to do. Moreover, there is always the psychological fear that if you turn off all notifications that you will miss something important. In other words, turning notifications off all the time may not work for a lot of people.

there may be times when you want notifications on so turning them on and off multiple times during the day can become a chore and one more thing to remember to do.

We took this into consideration when we were building our productivity app cum interruption killer. Pomodus automates silencing your notifications when you need them silenced – when you’re heads-down doing work that requires focus and concentration. As soon as you’re finished your productivity cycle notifications return automatically and you can easily review what you’ve missed in Slack – because while you don’t see the notifications, the messages are still being received.

Pomodus automates silencing your notifications when you need them silenced – when you’re heads-down doing work that requires focus and concentration.

Besides technology interruptions, there are also interruptions from colleagues. Pomodus allows you to decide when you want to focus but from our perspective, this is only half of the equation. Who else knows that you’re focusing? Your colleagues mostly don’t interrupt you on purpose, they simply have no way of knowing that you’re busy. In a podcast that I listened to recently, Eyal gives the example of how he prevented interruptions at home with his daughter. He explained to her that when he was wearing a tiara that this meant that he was busy. A visible and unusual way of communicating with his daughter. It worked.

Your colleagues mostly don’t interrupt you on purpose, they simply have no way of knowing that you’re busy.

Are Those People Wearing Headphones Actually Working?

In many offices, the equivalent of a tiara is headphones, but from my perspective wearing them has become ambiguous. Is the person wearing headphones focusing or are they just listening to music while texting a friend or online shopping? Eyal suggests putting up a piece of paper or some kind of sign that you’re busy.

Is the person wearing headphones focusing or are they just listening to music while texting a friend or online shopping?

When I began my career in the recruiting business, the firm that I worked for had signs made for us that said, “Prime Time Is My Time”. During the core hours when we were meant to be making phone calls to clients we were to put these up so that colleagues wouldn’t disturb us. It worked. The challenge with these visual cues is that you typically have to be standing next to the person in order to see them – unless you choose to wear the tiara : )

Hacking Back Triggers

As Neyal points out, if someone has come over to your desk and is standing in front of you, it’s too late. He advocates for systems that prevent the possibility of interruptions. This is what he means by “hacking back” internal or external triggers. For example, if you’re on a diet and know you don’t want to eat ice cream, it’s probably too late if you’re sitting at the table with a spoon in your hand and the ice cream bucket open next to you. Trying to engage your willpower at this point is unlikely to happen. Instead, not having ice cream in the house would be a way to hack back that trigger.

He advocates for systems that prevent the possibility of interruptions. This is what he means by “hacking back” internal or external triggers.

An Alternative To The Tiara

Our “tiara solution” with Pomodus was to leverage Slack to broadcast to your colleagues that you’re in a “productivity cycle” and doing important work. The tomato that appears next to your name is unmistakable and is intended to highlight your status. When colleagues see it and roll over it, it tells them that you’re in a “productivity cycle” and at what time you’ll be done. This way colleagues know that when the tomato disappears that you’re available to speak with them. It’s like a dashboard that shows who is busy and who isn’t. Most importantly, colleagues will see the tomato and not walk over to you in the first place.

Our “tiara solution” with Pomodus was to leverage Slack to broadcast to your colleagues that you’re in a “productivity cycle” and doing important work.

Boost Morale

Seeing several people on your team with tomatoes next to their names can also be amazing from a team morale perspective. This in itself can boost productivity as team members compete with each other in a friendly way to show that they’re focusing and committed to getting their key tasks done.

Seeing several people on your team with tomatoes next to their names can also be amazing from a team morale perspective.

External triggers are the obvious outward things that we have either direct or indirect control over. Our goal with Pomodus was automating the process of turning off notifications when you need them off without having to spend any energy thinking about it. Using Slack as a dashboard to show when you’re busy and when you’re not is aimed at preventing people from coming up to you and interrupting in the first place. It’s also a way of changing team behaviour (letting them know that you’re busy and not to interrupt) without having to have the uncomfortable conversations that this can sometimes take. In addition, it can boost morale and improve the team dynamic to see lots of people working.

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