As productivity demands grow, the necessity of performing quickly and efficiently at work has also increased. The endless multi-tasking often results in scattered attention between tasks that all need doing. The question is, with divided attention are we doing those tasks well?
Creating a culture of thinking in knowledge-based professions can help us solve problems more effectively and efficiently. A common complaint about unsatisfying workplaces is the false pressure to have an answer right now or to manage almost constant technological and in-person disruptions to focused work.
How can I reclaim time to think?
1). Communicate proactively:
- Provide clear agendas
- Utilize shared workflow diagrams or tools
- Set checkpoints
- Set proactive times for anticipated answers
- Provide meaningful collaborative work times to avoid constant “pings”
2). Create protected space
- Block thinking or focused work times in the calendar
- Book opportunities to leave your desk or work in quiet, focused spaces with minimal distraction
- Wear noise cancelling headphones
3). Provide wait time after posing a thought or asking a question
- Offer structured reflection time-What went well? What would we do in similar cases?
- If someone asks a question and you think they may have an answer, wait a moment to see if they can generate an answer themselves
4). Provide in-built times for thinking and regrouping
- Provide moments of reflection in meeting schedules
- Reduce meeting duration or frequency to provide thinking breaks
- Provide clear, scheduled opportunities to return to the topic at hand
- Schedule bio breaks and encourage people to take that time to think on a posed question
5). Create a culture of critical thinking
- Provide case examples
- Scaffold learning by providing direction, rather than answers
Brearley, B. Leaders need Thinking Time and Here’s How to Get it. (2023). https://www.thoughtfulleader.com/thinking-time/
Editorial: Scientists need more time to think. Nature 631, 709 (2024)
Facione, P. A., Facione, N.C., & Giancarlo, C. A. F. (1997) The Motivation to Think in Working and Learning. Jones, E (Ed.) Preparing Competent College Graduates: Setting New and Higher Expectations for Student Learning. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers. 67-79.
