The Flip Side to Interruptions

Earlier in the week I wrote about my puppy Genevieve, otherwise known as “my latest interruption.”  Having her here with me while I work means that I have to pay attention to her and my work at the same time.  But I realized that there’s a flip side to getting interrupted.  It has made me work differently than before. 

As a freelance writer, I have several different jobs that pay the rent.  I write for a couple different blogs, a weekly online column, and various articles and even a few books.  I also run a side business, which brings in a few bucks between those freelance gigs. 

Since I have so many different things going on, I tend to go from one thing to the next, in an effort to stay on top of them all.  Throughout the day I would check email, make notes for one blog, update another, back and forth.  I never felt very productive, and truth be told I probably wasn’t.

When we got the dog, I had to take breaks in order to tend to her:  feed her, let her out, see what mischief she was up to, etc.  Once I got used to having the dog around, I found myself that much more focused when I got back to work.  I stayed on one task at a time, rather than jumping from one to the other.  I’d plow through one until I got it done, and only when I finished did I move on to the next.  I closed out my email and only checked it a couple times a day (rather than every few minutes). 

Bloggers, especially, are known to sit at their desk for long hours without taking a break.  But the result of working differently was that I was able to get the same amount of work done in less time.  By taking a few breaks, I was actually more productive. 

Looks like I’m not alone.  I caught an interesting article about simplifying your life, and found one of the key points was doing one thing at a time.  The author writes:

“Do one thing at once” isn’t just about not multitasking; it’s also about paying attention.”

I understood this line of thinking.  When I took a break to let the dog out, for example, I actually enjoyed getting some fresh air while the puppy sniffed around the yard.  I didn’t get frustrated with her for not doing her business quicker and I didn’t sit there and think of the all the things I should have been writing about instead.  I enjoyed the few minutes outside. 

When I stopped to feed her and even play with her a bit, I didn’t look at how messy the house was (dog toys everywhere, dust an inch thick).  I just took the moment to appreciate the fact that I had a happy little dog who was enjoying my company as well.

This was a concept I never fully grasped when I worked in an office.  I always wanted to be so valuable to my employers that I’d sacrifice lunches and work overtime, all the while becoming more tired and less focused.  I would wonder how some of my cohorts would be able to leave at five or even take a daily lunch break without feeling guilty.  Perhaps they knew what I’m first starting to find out, that focusing on one thing at a time and welcoming the occassional interruption isn’t such a bad thing.

Image from A.Burbach.