Comments on: Chat: Productivity Kryptonite

By: Mark Sicignano

Mark Sicignano — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 02:58:11 +0000

Josh,

If you’re reading blogs and email instead of doing what you feel you should be doing, then it’s not that they’re intrusive, it’s that you’re not being disciplined enough. Perhaps what you’re “supposed to be doing” is boring the heck out of you, or you’re just not interested in doing it.

On the other hand, IM is intrusive, because it gives your friends and coworkers an easy way to interrupt you and you are at their mercy. Anytime they want to bug you, they can and by having IM up, you’re inviting those interruptions.

By: Josh

Josh — Sun, 26 Jun 2005 01:10:46 +0000

I don’t know about you guys, but I think e-mail/blogs are just as intrusive to productivity as instant messaging. I find myself reading blogs or checking my e-mail and actually reading and replying when I should be doing sometime completely different!

By: Keith

Keith — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 19:42:48 +0000

Jennifer — Sorry! Yes, by “chat” I mean Instant Messaging.

By: Jennifer Grucza

Jennifer Grucza — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 19:38:15 +0000

By “chat”, do you mean instant messaging? I’m not familiar with iChat. To me, “chat” means irc or chat rooms, which I find to be useless and annoying. Instant messaging is great for communication, though, so long as you restrict the number of people who have access to you. It’s great for sending code snippets to colleagues at work (unless you’re trying to send HTML code using AIM, that is).

By: Yannick L.

Yannick L. — Mon, 13 Jun 2005 18:06:32 +0000

Keith, you are so correct, it is a huge distraction when trying to be productive. Of late I have been not signing when I am trying to do work.

By: Janis Gonser

Janis Gonser — Mon, 13 Jun 2005 15:54:35 +0000

I am not a big fan of chatting, but I think that chatting software can be beneficial. When working in a team environment it can be very helpful and cut down on time when trying to have minor questions answered. I never use a chat app in my private time, but it definitely has a place in my work environment. I would consider that communicating rather than chatting.

As it is with many tools, it’s up to us what we make out of it. If you don’t like the chatty chat, block them out.

Janis

By: Mark Sicignano

Mark Sicignano — Sat, 11 Jun 2005 16:51:34 +0000

I refer to Instant Messaging as Instant Interruption.

I’ve had numerous people suggest to me that I install it. I tell them that I’m not interested. Read the book “Peopleware” by Timothy Lister and Tom DeMarco. There’s a whole chapter about concentration, productivity, “flow”, and interruptions.

Basically, you’re most productive when you’re immersed in a task. In a state of flow. It typically takes about 15 minutes to get into this state of concentration. The phone rings, somebody asks you a question, or you get an instant message that you attend to, and you’re OUT of that state. That one minute “chat” got you about 15 minutes of lost productivity… “Now… Where was I… Shoot how many did I do so far? What was that thought that I wanted to include in that section? Doooah!”

Those of you who are saying, “I can multitask well. It doesn’t slow me down”… well, you’re just kidding yourself, or maybe you have a job that can be done by monkeys.

:-)

By: Chuck Reynolds

Chuck Reynolds — Fri, 10 Jun 2005 21:45:33 +0000

Ahh.. the never ending battle between employees and employers…

Well within the last three years I’ve gone from the employee side to the employer and sometimes it really is a BIG issue with some people. Most of the time employees can handle such a distraction and still get their work done, but with some – it is really getting to be a time-waster and does very much effect productivity.

On the other hand – I personally use it for support with various vendors and companies for instant support or PO help.

… and so the debate continues.

By: Keith

Keith — Fri, 10 Jun 2005 16:06:49 +0000

Brian — you brought up the double-edged sword nature of chat. I find it can be a great productivity tool, under the right circumstances. The problem lies in that, if you’re asking me a question, and I’m focused on something else, while it helps you, it could hurt me.

As far as how intrusive it is, I’d say I agree that one IM isn’t as intrusive as a phone call. But, with me anyway, it’s never just one IM…and I get easily sidetracked as well.

But it’s a tool, right? It’s all in how you use it.

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 10 Jun 2005 15:53:33 +0000

Instant Messaging is amazingly helpful for me.
You’re certainly right that a long chat, or several at once, does hamper productivity.

But if I have a quick question for someone, I get an answer faster if I send it by IM than if I send an e-mail. And it’s not as intrusive an interruption as a phone call or walk to their office, since they don’t have to respond immediately.

For me, it fits in right between a phone call and an e-mail. Faster than e-mail, usually about the same speed as a phone call, but less intrusive for the recpient.

Gotta be a quick question, though. Conversations that way take way too long and get easily sidetracked.

It’s also useful as another channel during a phone call – e.g. for sending URLs or other things you’d otherwise have to speak slowly and the recipient would have to transcribe.