Quiet time… yes, quiet time in the office
Productivity in business is key. This is how money is made. One of the most common desires of my coaching clients is more free time to do the things they are good at that will grow their business. Many of these clients complain of constant interruptions and rarely getting the opportunity to focus on the project, client or task at hand.
In a recent coaching session with my client Sheri Remple at ARO Consulting, I learned of an amazing breakthrough for Sheri and her team in Vancouver. Quiet time, yes… quiet time in the office. Seems that they struggled to get that uninterrupted focus time that she and her partner needed to focus on their client work. They had tried many different things but continued to struggle with interruptions. At her wit’s end, Sheri implemented 2 – 1-hour blocks of office quiet time.
Rules of engagement –
1 – No phone calls, the receptionist takes messages
2 – No interruptions… period
3 – In-boxes positioned outside the office, not inside.
4 – No music, visiting, or chatter
5 – Quiet time for 100% of the team, not just the partners
Results –
1 – Productivity has substantially increased
2 – The “entire” team loves it… seems they too felt like they were always being interrupted… it was system-wide
3 – Everyone is happier
4 – Clients are getting better support
5 – The 1 hour time blocks are slowing growing to 2 hours naturally
5 – More billable time, more revenue, more profit
Hearing this story reminds me of another client story from a few years back. They too discovered that they were their own worst enemy. One of the team members had to work remotely from home for a week due to a sick child. When this person returned to the office the following week they were astonished at their level of productivity working from home. Their comment was “We are our own worst enemy in terms of productivity”.
Sometimes it is the subtle simple things that make a huge difference. As you can see from this story the ultimate results are happier team members and more profit. A win-win!