Does getting on-line ever feel overwhelming like this "hyper-connected' guy below?
Personally, I have felt this way, but in this post I want to add technology to the mix of tools I began to address in this January 25th post on the power of personal goals and mono-tasking (focusing on one thing at a time) to make an impact on those around you. Specifically, I want to focus on how we can leverage technology tools such as e-mail, social media and video to further enhance our ability to connect with others and increase our productivity.
Practically
I aim to use the following practices to extract the benefits of technology to develop
my mono-tasking abilities:
1) Information
Stewardship: E-mail and social media (especially Twitter
and Facebook) provide a flood of information that threatens to overwhelm us
every day. However, there are two
practices I use to properly direct this flood so that it enables me to
effectively connect with others and accomplish my priority tasks.
a)
Keep E-mail Caged: First, I have disabled the sound and flashing
icon that accompanies every new e-mail so that I don't go to Outlook like a “Pavlovian
Puppy” when I receive an e-mail. Instead
I strive to check it between meetings and prioritized tasks. For other great e-mail practices, check out
the 10 best practices in this E-mail
Charter - my person favorite is the suggestion to “tighten the thread” by
picking up the phone if the issue can’t be resolved in three e-mails.
b)
Use Social Media with a
Purpose: Rather
than being “on” Facebook or Twitter all the time, I attempt to log in only when
I have a specific purpose and not linger longer than necessary. In addition, I seek to prioritize my social
media activity into my day; in fact, I find when I am more deliberate about the
key things I want to accomplish in a given day, social media often doesn’t make
the list. It is true that social media
can be a great way to connect with others, especially those who you are unable
to see in person, but many times a personal e-mail or (gasp) a phone call can
be a much more effective way to connect with others.
2) Be
present, be honest and show your video:
a)
Be Present: In meetings, I strive to
give my undivided attention to the people before me. In our hyper-connected world it is easy to
fall into the trap that I can focus on more than one thing at a time (my e-mail
and the person talking to me on the phone), but as this 10 minute TED film called
Brain Power illustrates attention
is the brain’s most important resource.
b)
Be Honest: Unfortunately, I can’t
always focus on the person I am speaking with and need to attend to other
urgent issues. When that is the case, I
aim to be honest with the person in front of me by asking for time to conduct
an additional task during the meeting.
For example, “Can you excuse me for a second, I need to wrap up this IM
chat before we start our conversation.”
c)
Use Video: According
to research by Albert Mehrabian when we talk about feelings or attitudes face
to face, 55% of our meaning is conveyed through non-verbal communication. This means in a world where the vast majority
of my work meetings are virtual, I am cutting off over half of my ability to
fully convey the meaning of my attitudes when I don’t show my video. When bandwidth allows I will always show my video
to ensure I am maximizing my ability to connect with those I am meeting
with.
Your Opinion: I would love to hear others
thoughts on this topic. Do you see the above two uses of
technology as effective ways to connect with others and accomplish your
personal goals? Do you have other
methods that you find helpful?
I
look forward to hearing your thoughts on this, whether here in this blog or
e-mailing me directly (joabmeyer@global.t-bird.edu).
Hey Joab, this is Oseas - a way that I like to use to combine technology and attention is the pomodoro technique. This is basically chopping off your work day in 25 uninterrupted, one task minute blocks with 5 minute rests. Then you plan how many of these periods ('pomodoros') you need to perform a specific task and you go for it.
ReplyDeleteThere is a chrome extension to help you time this, so it's a nice intersection of attention management and technology.
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/strict-pomodoro/cgmnfnmlficgeijcalkgnnkigkefkbhd?hl=en
Hope this helps!
Oseas - That is a great tip! I will have to give the promodoro technique a try! There is a great intro to the technique and related resources on their website - http://www.pomodorotechnique.com/
ReplyDeleteHi Joab, this is great write-up, I follow some these, works for me... few things that I follow:
ReplyDelete1) For me, tools/internet really help if used with a "why" in mind instead being carried away with the cool features that may be great but not of much use in my context
2) Set aside time for social media and know upfront what I’ll do than just wandering around – I use Flipboard that consolidates social updates with my other reads in one view, instead of hopping from site to site or tempted by the desktop/app notifications
3) Driven by real purpose than just tasks (e.g. finish this doc or fix that bug), kind of weekly theme for my work. Really helps me stay focused.
4) Have time for motivation capsules such as TED talks… really energize and inspire me to continue to work especially now I work a one person time most of the time :)
Hope this helps! Love to chat on this topic.
Gaurav,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts. I like the idea of considering the "why" when it comes to the internet and technology tools. I also agree that knowing upfront what specific task you are trying to accomplish is a very healthy discipline - when it comes to any technology tool. Thanks as well from the Flipboard and TED talk recommendations - very helpful!