Stop Letting Push Notifications Ruin Your Productivity

Today’s workplace is characterized by the sight and sound of desktop and smartphone notifications, keeping executives in a state of hyper-responsiveness. But push-notifications are sapping our ability to get into flow, to do our best work, and to leave the office feeling truly accomplished. If you want to get more done at work, be more intentional about how you use technology. For starters, disable all notifications on both your desktop and smartphone. Turn off your phone or set it to Airplane mode for set periods of time. Designate windows of time to check and batch-respond to email. Focus on completing one task at a time. Leaders can help their teams by clearly communicating the effect of task switching on productivity and mental well-being, and by making it okay to not respond to things immediately. By being more intentional about our relationship with technology, we can cultivate a work environment in which we are not only more productive, but also more fulfilled and actualized versions of ourselves.