Focus Time
Designers Unleashed: The Quest for Uninterrupted Focus Time!
Three tipps summarized, packed with wisdom, awaits you at the glorious finale of this article.
As a design lead, I recognize the significance of collaboration and cooperation with other departments. To facilitate effective coordination, I have made my calendar visible to all coworkers. I have a strong inclination towards working with different teams, listening to their requests, solving problems together, and creating impactful concepts. By making my availability transparent, I aim to meet the needs of others in a well-organized manner.
Focus Time and its Importance
Focus time is a critical component of my workflow as a creative professional. It allows for hyper-focus and enables me to reach a state of deep concentration, enhancing productivity and creativity. By strategically removing distractions and dedicating specific time blocks to focus on tasks, I can maximize the quality and efficiency of my work.
Why Focus Time is Crucial for High Creatives
Highly creative individuals, who typically constitute a smaller percentage of the workforce, greatly benefit from dedicated focus time. It provides them with the mental space and freedom necessary for generating innovative ideas, exploring unique design solutions, and pushing the boundaries of creativity. This focused approach allows for the best utilization of their creative potential.
Implementation of Focus Time
To establish effective time management practices, I diligently incorporated focus time into my calendar through time blocking. I further enhanced its visibility by adding a descriptive title that indicated the unavailability of other meetings. Recognizing the importance of clear communication, I included an explanation in the meeting descriptions to emphasize the significance of this dedicated time. By actively communicating with managers and coworkers, I ensured a shared understanding and commitment to this approach. As part of expectation management, I designated two consistent days each week for focus time, fostering a sense of predictability and mutual respect.
I leveraged a cat ear headset with customizable LED lights (a great investment if you ask me) to inject some lightheartedness and visual cues into the office environment. Displaying a playful poem on the wall, I creatively conveyed the meaning of different colors, symbolizing a blend of warmth and determination. Using the German phrase "Sind die Ohren rot, herrscht akutes Ansprechverbot." (translated as "If the ears are red, there's an acute ban on speaking."), even colleagues on the move can quickly grasp the intention, ensuring they stay informed even without immediate access to the calendar.
Challenges with Leadership Interactions
During my experience, I encountered various challenges with leaders from other departments who disregarded my focus time and prioritized their own requests without considering the impact on my work.
For instance:
One leader consistently called and messaged me, marking them as a high priority while scheduling meetings during my focus time. However, it turned out that none of these topics were urgent. We could have easily rescheduled these discussions for a time when I was available and could provide the necessary attention. Unfortunately, if I had prioritized everything they wanted for me immediately, I would have lost valuable time for the tasks I had officially prioritized with my team to meet the product milestones.
In a team meeting, another leader announced that an appointment was scheduled for that week, precisely during my focus time. Despite being aware of my busy schedule, they prioritized their non-urgent request over my pre-existing commitments. I kindly pointed out that I did not have availability at that particular time. Surprisingly, their response was to complain that I never had time for them. This was untrue, as I regularly allocated multiple days a week to address the concerns of others. Ultimately, the meeting was rescheduled two days later, and everyone involved was satisfied with the new arrangement.
One leader had an urgent matter in the morning and called me at the beginning of my focus time. We quickly resolved the issue. However, later in the day, they attempted to contact me again for less urgent matters, which I chose not to accept to maintain my focus. I suggested that they write down their request in a couple of sentences so that I could schedule a meeting in the future or discuss it on a day when I expected to have finished my current tasks. To my surprise, this led to an hour-long email expressing their lack of understanding and frustration. Eventually, they summarized their concerns in three key points.
Positive Interactions with Others
Conversely, I had positive experiences with three other individuals in the company:
One colleague noticed I was on focus time but had an urgent question. They respectfully sent me a chat message, suggesting that we could have a quick verbal discussion as they would prefer so, but also understanding and accepting that I needed to focus. They mentioned that they could handle the problem a day later or simply await my response via text message when I had time. This considerate my focus time approach lightened my mental load significantly.
Another individual scheduled a meeting with me at a time I hadn't initially blocked. Despite the assumption that this could be a tricky task considering past experiences, it turned out to be a seamless arrangement. This further reinforced the importance of effective communication and understanding among colleagues.
One person expressed uncertainty about our calendar tool and simply asked me to set up a meeting. Their straightforward approach was well-received and demonstrated a mutual willingness to collaborate effectively.
These interactions highlight the significance of respectful communication, understanding, and flexibility within the workplace, fostering an environment where focus time and collaboration can coexist harmoniously.
Tipps
Time Blocking: Implementing time-blocking techniques helps me achieve my working goals while ensuring adequate time for focus and collaboration with other departments.
Expectation Management: By sticking to specific days for availability and clearly communicating these to coworkers, it provides them with mental clarity and reduces the need to inquire about my availability constantly. Additionally, not accepting random calls during focus time helps maintain uninterrupted concentration.
Leading by Example: As a leader, we must be mindful of our own behavior. Colleagues often model their actions after leaders, so fostering a positive work environment includes demonstrating respect for boundaries, maintaining professionalism, and prioritizing team goals and milestones.
By prioritizing focus time and nurturing effective communication, design leaders can foster a productive and collaborative work environment while unleashing the full creative potential of their teams.
Extra Tipp: Do you want your team to achieve their highest potential? - Hire me. (recommended)
Cheers, your smart future coworker Franzi š„